Louisville, Ky. (WHAS11) - A University of Louisville scientist who is making advances in autism research and treatment is sounding a new alarm.
Dr. Manuel Casanova believes something very common to all pregnant women may be contributing to the growing number of autism cases.
His reasons for sounding the alarm are both scientific and deeply personal.
WHAS11’s Melissa Swan has more on the research that expectant mothers might want to consider.
Nearly every pregnant woman gets an ultrasound - or two or three.
These days, parents post the pictures on websites; everything from YouTube, where you’ll find images of babies in-utero with background music, to their own personal blogsites.
In ultrasounds, high frequency sound waves get images of the baby, measurements are taken, abnormalities detected, and the sex of the baby is learned
Now, though, Dr. Manuel Casanova, a noted research scientist at the University of Louisville, is sounding a warning about ultrasounds.
“It's not just about taking a picture of your baby,” he said. “This has physical and chemical effects and it's poorly regulated by the government.”
Casanova published a report earlier this year in the journal “Medical Hypothesis,” spelling out his concerns of ultrasounds.
In it, he noted rising rates of autism coincident with the increased use of ultrasound in obstetrics, and demanded further research.
Currently it's thought that 1 in 110 children have some form of autism. Some of these cases have subtle characteristics, and others are more pronounced.
Dr. Casanova believes a mix of genetic and environmental factors has led to the rise in autism, and there is nothing now or even on the horizon that may stem that rise.
He thinks that ultrasounds are a risk factor that need to be looked at.
“Even if it doesn’t have anything to do with autism, it needs to be regulated,” he said.
Dr. Jeffrey King is the director of Maternal Fetal Medicine at U of L. He sees high risk pregnancies everyday and uses ultrasound technology. Click here to see Melissa's whole interview with Dr. King.
While he doesn't believe ultrasounds are related to autism, he also warned, they’re not a toy.
“Ultrasounds shouldn't be done just for fun,” Dr. King said. “There shouldn't be keepsake images done. There shouldn't be ultrasound done to take a look of the baby to tell you whether it's a boy or girl.”
Dr. Casanova admitted autism is not just a professional pursuit. For him, it's also a personal matter. His grandson is autistic.
Bertrand is Dr. Casanova's first grandchild. Until he was 18-months-old, Bertrand played, babbled, and developed normally.
Then, he was diagnosed with Retts Syndrome, a rare form of autism in which the development regresses.
Dr. Casanova began to sound his warning about ultrasounds after seeing photos of Bertrand at his daughter’s house.
“She had in her coffee table a book that summarizes my grandson's first year of life,” he said. “For every year we have pictures. The first picture, first page of that the first year of life, do you know what was his first picture? Ultrasound.”
Dr. Casanova is a scientist who relies on years of painstaking research to draw conclusions, but this time, he’s raising his concerns early .
“My daughter, when I told her about ultrasound, she told me ‘Why, Daddy, why didn't you tell me you always suspected it could be a risk factor? Why didn't you tell me?’” he said. “ I said, we have to be cautious. Right now maybe that has colored my perspective, and I’m not that cautious, but I know if I can prevent this even in one patient, I will have made my life's work.”
Clearly, the Dr. Casanova and Dr. King disagree, but they both say ultrasound should used only when medically necessary and then, ask a lot of questions.
You can find more resources and information on autism, FEAT, this story and more below and in the sidebar box. Both contain links to more information.
- You can watch the entire interview with Dr. King here.
- Click here for more information on Dr. Manuel Casanova
- Original paper: Antenatal Ultrasound and Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Official statements from the Association for Medical Ultrasound on Fetal Keepsake Imaging (choose fetal keepsake from the dropdown box and click "go")
- More information About FEAT - Families for Effective Autism Treatment
- FEAT chairman shares his personal experience with Autism - click here
- More information on FEAT membership
