In premature infants, bleeding inside the skull and respiratory distress requiring a certain type of ventilator may each contribute to an increased risk of autism, suggests a large study published in the January issue of The Journal of Pediatrics.

Most of the children who would lose their autism diagnosis under the diagnostic criteria released last year will fall under the new category of social (pragmatic) communication disorder, reports a large study of Korean children. The study was published last week in the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

A shortage of trained doctors, lack of awareness and long waiting lists for specialized care delay diagnosis and treatment of autism in many low- and middle-income countries, report two new studies.

About one in five children who appeared to have autism in 2006 and 2008 would lose that classification with the diagnostic criteria for autism released last year, according to a study published yesterday in JAMA Psychiatry.

An updated version of a test that detects autism symptoms in toddlers is shorter, simpler and more accurate than its predecessor, making it easier for pediatricians to identify children in need of further testing, reports a study published in the January issue of Pediatrics.

Men who have an extra X chromosome have an elevated risk of developing autism, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, according to a study in the January issue of the Journal of Psychiatric Research.

The prevalence of autism among 8-year-old children remained relatively stable from 2004 to 2010 in the U.K., reports a study published 16 October in BMJ Open. But experts say the study may be underestimating autism’s rates in the general population.

In Ireland, children born to women who have emigrated from certain African countries are more likely to be diagnosed with autism, and to have more severe symptoms of the disorder, than their peers, says Louise Gallagher.

Schoolteachers in Oman have a poor understanding of autism’s causes and symptoms, suggests a survey published 22 October in Autism.

Children with poor vision or a hearing loss are more likely to be diagnosed with autism than are those in the general population, reports a large epidemiological study published in October.