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Brain Scan May Predict If Infants Will Be Diagnosed with Autism

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Brain Scan May Predict If Infants Will Be Diagnosed with Autism
Researchers Look at Brain Scans to Predict Whether At-risk Infants Will Go on to be Diagnosed with Autism
June 7, 2017

Differences in a baby’s brain activity patterns at 6 months of age can predict which children will go on to have autism at 2 years of age, according to a study published this week by the Infant Brain Imaging Study network, which includes CHOP’s Center for Autism Research.

“2017 has been a breakthrough year for decades of research aimed at detecting the earliest changes in the brain that are associated with autism,” said Robert T. Schultz, PhD, who leads the CHOP research site. “This current study reveals the foundational patterns of brain function at age 6 months, which set in motion developmental processes that yield behavioral symptoms of autism by age 24 months. This is an astounding observation that could fundamentally change clinical practice.”

Read more on Dr. Schultz and his colleagues’ findings.

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