Possible link between Autism and Induced Labor

[ryoder]

I do this too. I once decided to buy new rims and tires for my 2002 Corvette. I spent 45 min every morning looking at wheels and tires and compiling lists of options for about 4 months. I never actually bought any and traded it in on a new Vette. My wife used to ask me jokingly "what are you doing looking at wheels?" I have to recognize things like this as threats to my well-being and cut them off.
This and other internet forums can distract people from what is truly important and lead to procrastination. That is why I caution people who have 50+ posts with zero CLEPs to stay off the site for a while.

putting it. I could spend hours researching online degrees or something that I'm looking to purchase, but have trouble focusing on schoolwork. Sometimes I can spend so much time doing something trivial such as making music, that important things go undone.

[cookderosa]

The politics of birth is huge. Huge. Huger than huge. Induction is a very controversial issue ANYWAY, so it's possible that this is agenda driven. Our c-section rate and induction rate are dangerously high, and our country is constantly criticized for having one of the poorer infant mortality rates. The conclusion or at least assumption, is that medicalized birth = higher incidence of mortality and birth problems. What they don't say is specifically which induction and augmentation methods were used. It's very common for a mom to go in the night before, allow them to prime her cervix with Cytotec (an off-label use of the drug by the way) so, that's one culprit. When or if her membranes are ruptured is a variable, and let's not forget about the lovely pitocin (synthetic oxytocin) if an when and how much is given. I think EVEN IF you could normalize the study for all these variables, you then have the cofounding issue of speed of labor and or the use of / or not / pain medication and or epidural use. Natural birth advocates have decades of data on mountains of outcome studies showing the dangers of these interventions and how they can result in raised infant mortality and c-section rates. It's midwives vs doctors, and TLC Baby Story vs Gentle Birth Choices.
My favorite line in the research is where they don't recommend any protocol change. I think this is going to be dead in the water, unfortunately, everyone feels medically justified in every medical procedure they have done. The flaw in the activist's ointment is that induction is CONSUMER DRIVEN. Studies like this are not likely to change consumer behavior.

[sklineho]

I'm curious as I have yet to read the study, but what criteria did they use to determine autism? Did they use the DSM-IV-TR or DSM-V?

[mrs.b]

I'm curious as I have yet to read the study, but what criteria did they use to determine autism? Did they use the DSM-IV-TR or DSM-V?

The posted abstract does not specify. Given the range of the study's data (1990-1998 and 1997-2007), you could assume they had to use a combination, but have not been able to put my hands on the full study to see if they adjusted to more accurately match. From the abstract and summaries given, the only details available (that I've seen) note the appearance of connection and call for further study to determine if and how actual relation exists.

[sklineho]

If production of the actual study began in 1990 (as opposed to the data itself beginning at that time) then DSM-III-R might have even been used. I have copies of every DSM going back to DSM-III (non-R version), I'll look to compare and contrast the criteria for autism from II to IV-TR and V. I think that will play a major role in how the study should be interpreted. (I love reading up on this sort of thing.)