Dubai: The recent study that suggests older men are more likely than young ones to father a child who develops autism or schizophrenia is being weighed by key professionals in the UAE community and healthcare sectors.
In view of the new findings, Sara Ahmad Baker, the community service unit head at Dubai Autism Centre, told Gulf News that the research identified the need for comprehensive global studies to better understand the causes of autism.
“Age is a contributing risk factor in pregnancies along with factors like environmental pollution, genetic predisposition, etc. “The increasing rate of autism — in line with global figures — is not only related to age; in the UAE, parents under 35 have autistic children. It is also known that late pregnancies put the baby at a higher risk of developing a range of development disorders,” she said.
Stressing the need for a nationwide survey to establish the rate of incidence of autism, she said the lack of statistics make it challenging to address the issue.
It is also important that research analyses the symptoms of speech development, social interaction and behaviour in an autistic child to find the underlying causes.
Currently, early screening for autism (between 16-30 months) is being implemented in hospitals managed by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).
She added that pre-marital medical tests are encouraged in the UAE to protect couples from genetic diseases.
Yet after finding out that one carries the genes responsible for some genetic diseases, couples still marry.
“There isn’t a law that prevents couples from getting married so the test isn’t an effective mechanism,” she said.
Gulf News reported 2009 statistics on mental illnesses in the UAE, pegging the percentage of people suffering from schizophrenia at one per cent. Updated statistics weren’t available at deadline.
Speaking to Gulf News, Dr Mohammad Hassan Fayek, American Board certified consultant psychiatrist, who has worked with schizophrenic patients for the past 15 years in the UAE and US, told Gulf News that the incidence of mental health illnesses is the same as other countries with a difference in reporting and detecting cases.
Of the studies establishing the link between males and age in relation to genetic risk isn’t at the level of similar studies among women, he said.
“There are emerging studies in relation to age of men from universities in the UAE; studies in general are yet to rise to the same level,” he said.
Dr Deema Lana Sihweil, clinical psychologist and director of Clinical Services, Human Relations Institute, Dubai, told Gulf News, that the findings are “good news”.
The knowledge could influence older would-be parents to minimise the risk of giving birth to children with psychological, physical and developmental conditions,” she said.
