Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of the final study sample of maternal-child dyads after all exclusions were applied (n = 998).
| Autistic disorder | Asperger disorder | Fisher's exact/paired t-test P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| n = 690 (69.8%) | n = 308 (31.2%) | ||
| Mean maternal age (SD)∗ | 38.6 (6.7) | 41.7 (6.5) | <.001 |
| Maternal race (% white) | 632 (91.6) | 296 (96.1) | <.05 |
| Maternal ethnicity (% Hispanic) | 47 (6.8) | 10 (3.3) | <.05 |
| Maternal education (% college degree) | 344 (49.9) | 173 (56.2) | ns |
| Urbanicity∗∗ | |||
| Large city (%) | 157 (22.8) | 66 (21.4) | ns |
| Suburban (%) | 224 (32.5) | 105 (34.1) | |
| Small/med city (%) | 210 (30.4) | 92 (29.9) | |
| Rural (%) | 99 (14.4) | 45 (14.6) | |
| Maternal mood disorder diagnosis (%) | |||
| No mood | 377 (54.6) | 132 (42.9) | .001 |
| Bipolar disorder | 43 (6.2) | 31 (10.1) | |
| Depression | 270 (39.1) | 145 (47.1) | |
| Mean child age (SD)∗ | 8.3 (3.8) | 11.1 (3.6) | <.001 |
| Child gender (% female) | 124 (18.0) | 40 (13.0) | .052 |
| Intellectual level∗∗∗ | |||
| IQ ≥ 116 (%) | 23 (11.1) | 108 (50.5) | <.001 |
| Phase speech by age 3 years∗∗∗∗ | 175 (26.9) | 220 (74.1) | <.001 |
∗Mean maternal and child age at the time the maternal mood disorder questionnaire was completed.
∗∗Based on NCHS Urban-Rural (NCHSUR) Classification Scheme for Counties [21].
∗∗∗ n = 422 (208 with AUT; 214 with ASP).
∗∗∗∗ n = 948 (651 with AUT; 297 with ASP).