Blood Test to diagnose Autism

I have read in todays press that it is possible to do a Blood Test to diagnose Autism.  You can google the info.  I am surprised that it is possible to do a blood test to diagnose Autism as it is really a personality with traits. I do not if it applies to Adults.  I am sure that if there is a real blood test many of us would be found not to have Autism but it would not help as we have the traits.    I do not know if one just has Asperger Syndrome whether that would show up on a blood test.

If you have any information or views on this subject I hope you will reply to me.

David

  • It should read brain damage is one of them meaning that brain damage is one cause of Autistic Symptoms.

    A Psychiatrist on visiting us said that  I was mildly Autistic back in 1976.  A Canadian Psychologist who tested me in Israel for the late Professor Feuerstein in 1983 E mailed from Toronto and  said that he did not know that I am Autistic but he knew I have a Non-Verbal Learning Difficulty on the Right Side of my brain.  I have googled that and people with that Disability also have social skills problems so there is an overlap in symptoms.  I have perception problems get lost easily and have difficulty in recognizing people.

  • I think I sent this  E mail above many years ago. This number is the name the NAS has now given me.  If there was a blood test to diagnose Autism we do not know if it would be reliable because people might have those deficiencies and might not behave as though as there are Autistic.  People have Autism symptoms for a variety  of reasons and I am sure brain damage is one of them.  I had a difficult birth and I fell out of a pram when I was a baby so I could be brain damaged not Autistic.

  • The source link from NHS retired, here is the one that still works.

  • Yes I am sure it will take a long time before a reliable test can be developed.  Even when it is developed I am sure there will be many people on the Spectrum who could not be diagnosed by a blood test or a brain scan.  Would it be possible not to be Autistic although Autism shows up in the blood test?  Meaning the blood have the deficiencies in it but not be Autistic.

  • Tbh all these “breakthroughs” are adverts for more funding. 

    Best taken with a large pinch of Sodium Chloride.

  • Well I hope the test cannot be used in Pregnancy as we do not want to eliminate babies who are  going to be different  Thanks for the replies

  • Thanks for the heads up, and pointing to a reliable source (NHS). Personally, I'd be surprised if these results were reproduced by other researchers, partly because it seems so unlikely that autism has a single cause. A lot of people have been looking for contributory genes, but those identified only seem to account for at most 25% of cases of autism, whereas this feeds more into the 'oxidative stress' and 'auto-immune' ideas.

    The selective increase in DT may suggest a role of increased DUOX activity in subjects with ASD. DUOX expression is increased through activating transcription factor 2 in inflammatory signalling. DUOX has an important role in gut mucosal immunity, host–microbe homeostasis, and signalling for neutrophil recruitment into allergic airways. Gut microbiota may be influential in the development of the behavioural phenotype in ASD children

    I'd guess they're looking for a maintenance drug as much as a test, although that would meet a lot of resistance.  Here's the press release, less balanced than the NHS: https://warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/blood_and_urine/

  • I don't know if the test could be given to pregnant women.

    According to the 'male brain' theory, autism is / could be caused by the child receiving too much testosterone whilst in the womb. This happens at a very specific time and, in theory at least, could be tested for. In practice, I think there would be too many variables. If this test ever does reach the stage of being repeated on a larger scale, it would likely only apply to children after birth. (And not immediately after either.)

    I think there's a lot more going on in resulting autism than simply a perfectly timed and measured overdose of testosterone. There are genes involved (a specific combination of several possibilities which, on their own, don't mean autism but which when combined do) which one or more parents must carry. Even a genetic test wouldn't be certain because having a gene doesn't mean it's expressed. Also, everyone's autism would show a different genetic make-up (Like everyone's fingerprint) hence the wide spectrum and no two autistic people being exactly the same.  

    I think we're a long, long way from an autism test. Especially in pregnancy.   

  • "The causes of ASD remain largely unknown, and any ways of improving our understanding of the condition are welcome. But media claims that this new test would help spot ASD early currently have no basis. [My emphasis.]"

    You will note there is no reference to adults.

    .....Greetings to all here. I Post great support to what "Caretwo" first says. Please listen to that.

    ...If the stated "Test" were TRUE, then they would gain the same results in Autistic Adults. But, indeed, where is the research specifying and/or correlating *that*?

  • Could the test be given to Pregnant women?  If it could then there is a danger that they might decide to abort their babies if they know it has Autism.  I hope that test will be restricted to children when they are already born.

    Thanks for the replies.

  • I would think the blood test could only be to measure hormone (testosterone) levels as that's the only (autism related) marker I've ever read of that would be measurable in the blood (based on the whole 'male brain theory'). If indeed it is testosterone / hormone levels in general that are being measured then the test could only be used in young children long before puberty kicks in.    

  • This text has been taken from the NHS website (https://www.nhs.uk/news/pregnancy-and-child/new-blood-test-autism-long-way/):

    "The study involved 38 children with ASD and 31 children without. Blood and urine samples were collected from all children and tested for various protein by-products, some of which are thought to be found at higher levels in people with ASD.

    "Based on the results of the tests, the researchers developed a computer-based model to predict whether a child had ASD or not. The model correctly identified 92% of the children who had ASD, and 84% of the children who did not.

    "This was an early study which provides the basis for further research. However it is far too soon to know if the test could ever be used in practice. [My emphasis.] From this single, small study we don't know that it's accurate enough or that it could improve upon existing methods for diagnosing ASD in clinical practice.

    "The causes of ASD remain largely unknown, and any ways of improving our understanding of the condition are welcome. But media claims that this new test would help spot ASD early currently have no basis. [My emphasis.]"

    You will note there is no reference to adults.

  • My son had a blood test when he was going through the diagnosis they told me it was to see if it was genetic