Fever in pregnancy linked to autism

Having a fever during pregnancy can increase the risk of autism and developmental delay in children.

Researchers at UC Davis found that women who had a high temperature during pregnancy were twice as likely to give birth to children with autism.

This is compared to women who did not have a fever or those who took medication to ease the symptoms.

The mothers of 538 children with autism, 163 children with developmental delay and 421 normally developing children were questioned about flu, fever and medication throughout pregnancy.

"Our study provides strong evidence that controlling fevers while pregnant may be effective in modifying the risk of having a child with autism or developmental delay," said Ousseny Zerbo, lead author of the study.

Although other infections that have fever as a symptom have been linked to autism before, this is the first study to look at the link with high temperature specifically.

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