Genetic aspects of infantile autism.

Infantile autism probably has many etiologies. Several specific genetic disorders appear to be associated with the syndrome much more often than would be expected by chance, but these account for only a minority of cases. In the majority of cases, where etiology is still unknown, genetic factors probably also play a role. Evidence suggests, however, that it is not autism per se that is inherited, but less severe abnormalities of language and cognition, which in turn lead to a predisposition to the development of autism in infants.