Mood, anxiety, personality and eating disorders more commonly affect autistic people diagnosed in adulthood than those diagnosed in childhood.

Interventions that moderate a need for ‘sameness’ may prevent anxiety traits.

Some clinicians say the term describes a subtype of autism, but others dispute its validity and say it is harmful to the autistic community.

Women who carry genetic variants tied to autism have an elevated chance of experiencing pregnancy-related events linked to the condition in their children.

Regions of the brain’s fear center expand in autistic children and teenagers with anxiety, but not in their autistic or non-autistic peers without anxiety.

The growth differences vary between autistic boys and girls and are most apparent among children with prominent social difficulties.

Doctors can prescribe it, but evidence that ketamine eases autism traits is still preliminary.

Drugs such as LSD act primarily on the serotonin system, which is implicated in autism — and some autistic people who experiment with psychoactive compounds report enhanced social connections, among other benefits. But researchers have more questions than answers.

The findings contradict a previous study, whose design may have been biased to find an effect.

The co-occurring conditions may stem from the heightened stress people in minority communities experience.