The Autism-Epilepsy Connection

Human brain illustrated with interconnected small nerves - 3d render — The human brain possesses about 100 billion neurons with about 1 quadrillion — 1 million billion — connections known as synapses wiring these cells together.

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Dr. Megdad Zaatreh is a board-certified neurologist with expertise in epilepsy who serves as medical director of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at CentraState Medical Center in Freehold, N.J. Zaatreh has published several research articles in peer-reviewed medical journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, Neurology and Epilepsia. He contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

Studies estimate that nearly one-third of people with autism spectrum disorder also have epilepsy. However, until recently, there was only limited clinical research on the connection between these two neurological conditions.

Epilepsy is a brain disorder marked by recurring seizures or convulsions. Autism is a neurobehavioral disease that includes impairment in social interaction and language development, which often includes rigid, systematic, repetitive behaviors. Both conditions can affect individuals with varying degrees of severity. Now, research has found that adults with epilepsy are more likely to show signs of autism and Asperger syndrome.

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Until recently, in many cases, adults with epilepsy may not have been properly diagnosed or treated for autism symptoms. The connection between the two conditions was the result of a study that showed epileptic seizures short-circuit the neurological function that affects socialization in the brain, which are the same traits seen in autism. These characteristics include the impairment of normal social interaction (eye contact, conversation, enjoying the act of sharing with someone else) and tightly regimented or repetitive cycles of behavior.

These new findings could mean that adults with epilepsy can now benefit from the wide range of autism treatment services available to help address the long-standing socialization issues many patients with epilepsy have experienced throughout their lives. This offers the possibility of significantly improving epileptics' overall quality of life. Up to this point, there have been few services to address those needs.

The highest incidence of epilepsy occurs during the first year of life, when many new parents overlook or misinterpret physical symptoms. Each year, 150,000 children and adolescents in the United States will have a newly occurring single seizure, and 30,000 will be diagnosed with epilepsy after subsequent seizures occur. During early childhood development, infants often exhibit a variety of erratic physical movements and mannerisms that may not cause immediate concern. But babies or children presenting any of these symptoms should be seen by a doctor immediately: