Attention to eyes is present but in decline in 2–6 month-old infants later diagnosed with autism

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Warren R Jones, Emory University; Ami Klin, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2013-12-19
• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2013, Rights Managed by Nature Publishing Group
• Final Published Version (URL): http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v504/n7480/full/nature12715.html
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Nature
• ISSN: 0028-0836
• Volume: 504
• Issue: 7480
• Start Page: 427
• End Page: 431
• Grant/Funding Information: Additional support was provided by the Marcus Foundation, the Whitehead Foundation, and the Georgia Research Alliance.; This work was supported by grants from the Simons Foundation and the National Institute of Mental Health (R01 MH083727).
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Human Development; Health Sciences, Mental Health; Biology, Genetics

Abstract

Deficits in eye contact have been a hallmark of autism1,2 since the condition’s initial description3. They are cited widely as a diagnostic feature4 and figure prominently in clinical instruments5; however, the early onset of these deficits has not been known. Here we show in a prospective longitudinal study that infants later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) exhibit mean decline in eye fixation within the first 2 to 6 months of life, a pattern not observed in infants who do not develop ASD. These observations mark the earliest known indicators of social disability in infancy, but also falsify a prior hypothesis: in the first months of life, this basic mechanism of social adaptive action—eye looking—is not immediately diminished in infants later diagnosed with ASD; instead, eye looking appears to begin at normative levels prior to decline. The timing of decline highlights a narrow developmental window and reveals the early derailment of processes that would otherwise play a key role in canalizing typical social development. Finally, the observation of this decline in eye fixation—rather than outright absence—offers a promising opportunity for early intervention, one that could build on the apparent preservation of mechanisms subserving reflexive initial orientation towards the eyes.