Diseases of the circulatory system among adult people diagnosed with infantile autism as children: A longitudinal case control study.
Autistic adults may have hidden heart problems—build easy, sensory-friendly cardiac checks into their care.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Drasgow et al. (2016) tracked heart health in adults who had been diagnosed with infantile autism as children.
They compared medical records of these adults with records of similar adults without autism.
The team looked for any circulatory disease, especially heart attacks and clogged arteries.
What they found
Adults with autism had fewer recorded heart attacks than the control group.
Overall circulatory disease was also slightly lower, but the difference was not strong enough to be sure.
The authors warn the low numbers may mean doctors miss heart problems in autistic patients.
How this fits with other research
Boudreau et al. (2015) found autistic adults carry higher rates of almost every major medical condition.
Erik’s heart results seem to clash, but the difference is narrow: A et al. counted all diseases, while Erik zoomed in on hearts.
Akobirshoev et al. (2020) show autistic adults are more likely to die in hospital; missed heart trouble could be one reason.
Gilmore et al. (2024) found more diabetes in autistic adults, a disease that often pairs with heart disease, again hinting hearts may be under-detected rather than truly healthier.
Why it matters
If you support autistic adults, schedule routine blood-pressure and cholesterol checks.
Use clear pictures, social stories, or silent waiting areas so clients tolerate the tests.
Share results with primary doctors and ask for heart-health plans written in plain language.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Research dealing with adult people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) noticeably lags behind studies of children and young individuals with ASD. AIMS: The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence and types of diseases of the circulatory system in a clinical sample of 118 adult people diagnosed with infantile autism (IA) as children with 336 sex and age matched controls from the general population. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: All participants were screened through the nationwide Danish National Hospital Register. The average observation time of both groups was 37.2 years, and mean age at follow-up was 49.6 years. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Of the 118 people with IA, 11 (9.3%) were registered with at least one disease of the circulatory system against 54 (16.1%) in the comparison group (p=0.09; OR=0.54; 95% CI 0.3-1.2). Ischemic heart diseases occurred significantly more frequently among people in the comparison group (p=0.02). CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: It is argued that diseases of the circulatory system may be underdiagnosed in people with IA because of the difficulties they face with respect to identifying and communicating symptoms of ill health. Bearing in mind that cardiovascular disease is the primary cause of death in most developed countries, it is suggested that to prevent disease and manage health conditions, health monitoring is essential in adult people with IA.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2016 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2016.07.002