Adolescents with autism report lower quality of life when it comes to relationships, but a better self-image and relationships with parents and teachers than do their typically developing peers, including those with diabetes.

The odds of having a child with autism begin to rise at age 35 for both men and women, but that risk does not increase further when both parents are over 35, according to a large study published in the March issue of Annals of Epidemiology.

The brains of men and women with Asperger syndrome are more similar than are those of male and female controls, according to a study published in the January issue of the American Journal of Neuroradiology. The results lend support to the ‘extreme male brain’ theory of autism, the researchers say.

Clinicians and autism researchers should learn the early signs of autism and take into account an individual’s developmental trajectory, says Tony Charman.

Can people with autism, who lack the ability to understand others’ thoughts and feelings, fall in love?

Two studies published in the past month highlight the challenges in balancing the accuracy of autism diagnosis with cost-effectiveness and speed.

Individuals with Asperger syndrome perform at the same level as controls do on tests of visual ability, according to a study published 30 August in Biological Psychiatry. This result adds to growing evidence against the claim, made in an infamous 2009 study, that individuals with autism have superior vision.

Teenagers with milder forms of autism withdraw socially in adolescence, even as some symptoms associated with the disorder wane.

Nothing is known about how the brain changes in aging individuals with autism, according to a review published online 24 August in Gerontology. Nor do researchers know whether the core symptoms of the disorder improve, worsen or remain unchanged with age.

The six diagnostic measures used to distinguish Asperger syndrome from high-functioning autism do not identify a unique subset of people, according to an analysis of 69 studies, published 2 August in Autism.