Two studies, one putting a false hope to rest, the other giving new hope

in understanding autism.

California Study Finds No Link Between Vaccines, Autism

After the mercury-based preservative thimerosol was removed from vaccines, there should have been a drop in new autism cases. That isn't the case. In fact, they continued to rise. Of course, there are a lot of parents and activists who wanted (and in some cases, still want) thimerosol to be the boogeyman in this case. At one point many parents were refusing vaccines for that reason.

I'm no fan of thimerosol. I'm allergic to it, for one--it used to be in contact lens solutions and would cause red streaks down my face wherever it touched. A doctor researching whether I could be given the DPT (diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus) vaccine when I was in college (they didn't have just plain tetanus, and I'd hurt myself), came across the thimerosol ingredient on the list and I explained my reactions. He was convinced there was a paper in it somewhere. That was in the mid-80s. Then came the vaccine scare. It made sense--it's related to mercury and can cause damage in animals. But it just never panned out. Still, it's probably just as well that it's been removed largely from vaccines.

But this looked quite promising:

Chromosome Abnormality Linked to Autism

Okay, they can only link it to about 1% of the autism cases, but it opens doors to newer discoveries. It seems there are mutations that are not directly inherited but rather happen in utero as a result of a variety of genetic aspects in the parents. In these cases it might be possible to do genetic counseling regarding subsequent pregnancies.

Autism is a developmental disorder that affects social interaction and communication. It presents as a spectrum of disorders. Asperger's is one of several on the autism spectrum. There is a wide variety in the severity of symptoms. Many people with autism are seen as a bit 'quirky' but are highly intelligent and function well in society. Others are more severely impaired. A famous author with autism is Temple Grandin. Here's a list of several others who have been diagnosed with autism or one of the spectrum disorders and those for whom autism is speculated (controversial, of course). There's a lot of controversy in autism--and not just in it's cause. For example, there's the autism rights movement and the sociological and cultural aspects of autism.