Assessment of 25 Hydroxy Cholecalceferol Level in Autistic Children; is there a role for it in Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder?

Abstract Background Autism is a group of neurodevelopmental disabilities with various genetic and environmental risk factors. Vitamin D is an important neurosteroid hormone which can affect brain development and function, but research on its use in treating autism has been limited. Objectives The current study aimed at assessing the level of 25 OH vit D3level in a group of autistic infants and children compared to controls and correlating it with the severity of autistic manifestations and evaluation of the role of therapeutic doses of vitamin D on the severity of autistic manifestations. Methodology Thirty autistic Egyptian children (group I) and 30 clinically healthy age and sex matched controls were enrolled (group II). Therapeutic doses of vitamin D were given for autistic children who showed insufficient levels of 25 OH cholecalceferol for a period of 4-6 weeks followed by maintenance doses for another 6 weeks. Psychometric and laboratory evaluation for this group was done thrice: at the onset of study, at 6 week after enrollment in the study, and at 12 weeks after that enrollment. Results Serum vitamin D level was substantially reduced in patients with ASD in comparison to control group, and on the other hand, 25 (OH) vitamin D level was significantly negatively correlated with ATEC score and Total CARS score. Autistic children who received vitamin D3 treatment had significant improvement of CARS and ATEC scores. Conclusion vitamin D supplementation significantly improved the outcome of enrolled autistic children. It is recommended to follow up our studied sample to check the consolidation of improvement for how long it will be needed.