Autism is traditionally viewed as a pervasive developmental disorder, diagnosed on the basis of clinically observed behavioural symptoms in the absence of any quantifiable biochemical or neurological markers. Anecdotal reports of the coincidence of certain physiological anomalies in subgroups of children with autistic spectrum disorders, outside the syndrome's diagnostic definition, have not as yet been adequately catalogued. Findings are presented from parental interviews (n = 46), examining the type and prevalence of these additional health and psychological factors, and their connection to a possible immunological/metabolic basis to autism and associated spectrum disorders.
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