Autism commonly aggregates in families, with twin studies estimating heritability to be around 80%. Subclinical autism‐like characteristics have also been found at elevated rates in relatives of autistic probands. Physical and psychiatric conditions have been reported at elevated rates in autistic children and adults, and also in their relatives. However, to date, there has been no exploration of how aging may affect this pattern. This study examined cross‐sectional data from the ongoing online PROTECT study. A total of 20,220 adults aged 50 years and older reported whether they have an autistic first‐degree relative. In total, 739 older adults reported having an autistic first‐degree relative (AFDR group) and 11,666 were identified as having no family history of any neurodevelopmental disorder (NFD group). The AFDR group demonstrated significantly higher frequencies of self‐reported psychiatric diagnoses and a greater total number of co‐occurring psychiatric diagnoses than the NFD group. Furthermore, the AFDR group reported elevated current self‐report symptoms of depression, anxiety, traumatic experience, and post‐traumatic stress than the NFD group. By contrast, few differences between AFDR and NFD groups were observed in physical health conditions, and no differences were observed in the total number of co‐occurring physical health diagnoses. These findings suggest that adults who have an AFDR may be at greater risk of poor mental, but not physical, health in later life. Older adults with autistic relatives may benefit from close monitoring to mitigate this susceptibility and to provide timely intervention. Autism Res 2020, 13: 641–654. © 2020 The Authors. Autism Research published by International Society for Autism Research published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

中文翻译：

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具有自闭症遗传易感性的老年人的心理和身体健康。

自闭症通常在家庭中聚集，双胞胎研究估计遗传力在80％左右。在自闭症先证者的亲属中也发现亚临床自闭症样特征的发生率较高。据报道，自闭症儿童和成人及其亲属的身体和精神病患病率较高。但是，迄今为止，还没有探索老化如何影响这种模式的探索。这项研究检查了正在进行的在线PROTECT研究的横截面数据。共有20220名年龄在50岁及以上的成年人报告他们是否有孤独症一级亲戚。共有739名报告患有自闭性一级亲属的老年人（AFDR组），有11,666名被确定为没有任何神经发育障碍的家族史（NFD组）。与NFD组相比，AFDR组的自我报告的精神病诊断频率明显更高，同时发生的精神病诊断总数也更高。此外，AFDR组报告的当前自我报告的抑郁，焦虑，外伤经历和创伤后应激症状较NFD组升高。相比之下，AFDR组和NFD组之间在身体健康状况上几乎没有差异，在同时发生的身体健康诊断总数上也没有差异。这些发现表明，患有AFDR的成年人在以后的生活中精神健康较差，但身体健康较差。患有自闭症亲属的老年人可能会受益于密切的监测，以减轻这种敏感性并提供及时的干预。焦虑，创伤经历和创伤后压力较NFD组更高。相比之下，AFDR组和NFD组之间在身体健康状况上几乎没有差异，在同时发生的身体健康诊断总数上也没有差异。这些发现表明，患有AFDR的成年人在以后的生活中精神健康较差，但身体健康较差。患有自闭症亲属的老年人可能会受益于密切的监测，以减轻这种敏感性并提供及时的干预。焦虑，创伤经历和创伤后压力较NFD组更高。相比之下，AFDR组和NFD组之间在身体健康状况上几乎没有差异，在同时发生的身体健康诊断总数上也没有差异。这些发现表明，患有AFDR的成年人在以后的生活中精神健康较差，但身体健康较差。患有自闭症亲属的老年人可能会受益于密切的监测，以减轻这种敏感性并提供及时的干预。这些发现表明，患有AFDR的成年人在以后的生活中精神健康较差，但身体健康较差。患有自闭症亲属的老年人可能会受益于密切的监测，以减轻这种敏感性并提供及时的干预。这些发现表明，患有AFDR的成年人在以后的生活中精神健康较差，但身体健康较差。患有自闭症亲属的老年人可能会受益于密切监视，以减轻这种敏感性并提供及时干预。Autism Res 2020，13：641-654。©2020作者。由Wiley Periodicals，Inc.出版的国际自闭症研究协会出版的《自闭症研究》。