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Causation model of autism: Audiovisual brain specialization in infancy competes with social brain networks
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Causation model of autism: Audiovisual brain specialization in infancy competes with social brain networks

Karen Frankel Heffler and Leonard M Oestreicher
Medical hypotheses, v 91
Jun 2016
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2015.06.019
PMID: 26146132
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2015.06.019View
Published, Version of Record (VoR)CC BY-NC-ND V4.0,  Open

Abstract

Animals Auditory Perceptual Disorders - physiopathology Autistic Disorder - etiology Autistic Disorder - physiopathology Brain - growth & development Brain - physiopathology Brain Mapping - methods Child Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - etiology Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - physiopathology Child, Preschool Disease Models, Animal Environment Face Facial Recognition Humans Infant Models, Neurological Neuronal Plasticity - physiology Social Behavior Speech Television Time Factors
Earliest identifiable findings in autism indicate that the autistic brain develops differently from the typical brain in the first year of life, after a period of typical development. Twin studies suggest that autism has an environmental component contributing to causation. Increased availability of audiovisual (AV) materials and viewing practices of infants parallel the time frame of the rise in prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Studies have shown an association between ASD and increased TV/cable screen exposure in infancy, suggesting AV exposure in infancy as a possible contributing cause of ASD. Infants are attracted to the saliency of AV materials, yet do not have the experience to recognize these stimuli as socially relevant. The authors present a developmental model of autism in which exposure to screen-based AV input in genetically susceptible infants stimulates specialization of non-social sensory processing in the brain. Through a process of neuroplasticity, the autistic infant develops the skills that are driven by the AV viewing. The AV developed neuronal pathways compete with preference for social processing, negatively affecting development of social brain pathways and causing global developmental delay. This model explains atypical face and speech processing, as well as preference for AV synchrony over biological motion in ASD. Neural hyper-connectivity, enlarged brain size and special abilities in visual, auditory and motion processing in ASD are also explained by the model. Positive effects of early intervention are predicted by the model. Researchers studying causation of autism have largely overlooked AV exposure in infancy as a potential contributing factor. The authors call for increased public awareness of the association between early screen viewing and ASD, and a concerted research effort to determine the extent of causal relationship.

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42 citations in Web of Science
39 citations in Scopus

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Web of Science research areas
Medicine, Research & Experimental
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