Autism may be related to swelling of the brain

Medical News Today reports::

Autism could be caused by an immune system reaction which causes the brain to swell, say researchers at John Hopkins University School of Medicine, USA. If this is so, we may one day be able to create a test for autism, and perhaps even develop treatment to prevent it.

Unfortunately, we cannot diagnose autism until it has already developed in the person – the earliest diagnosis takes place in the second year of life when signs of communication problems appear in the child (we don’t really know whether it develops or not after birth, whether it is already there before birth).