Table 3.
Level of corticosteroids, vanilyl mandelic acid, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, and prostaglandin E2 in the urine of autistic children compared with age and sex matched children with typical development, shown as mean and standard deviation*†
| Parameters | Control | LFA | MFA | HFA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
11- Hydroxycorticosteroids
(μg cortisol/24 h) |
326.00 ± 63.57 |
649.15 ± 110.36‡ |
450.61 ± 56.33‡ |
377.76 ± 49.10‡¶ |
|
Neutral 17- oxosteroids
(mg/day) |
3.44 ± 0.74 |
10.68 ± 1.34‡ |
8.73 ± 1.48‡ |
4.07 ± 0.67║¶ |
|
Total 17- oxosteroids
(mg/day) |
21.45 ± 4.08 |
56.72 ± 9.36‡ |
48.01 ± 6.96‡ |
29.06 ± 4.07‡¶ |
|
17- Oxogenic steroids
(mg/day) |
18.01 ± 3.60 |
46.04 ± 5.99‡ |
39.28 ± 6.09‡ |
24.99 ± 3.87‡¶ |
|
Total 17- Hydroxycorticosteroids
(mg/day) |
15.39 ± 2.85 |
42.73 ± 6.62‡ |
33.82 ± 5.41‡ |
24.56 ± 3.81‡¶ |
|
Vanilyl mandelic acid
(mg/day) |
5.8 ± 1.28 |
38.99 ± 4.68‡ |
13.35 ± 1.74‡ |
7.56 ± 1.06‡¶ |
|
5- Hydroxyindoleacetic acid
(mg/day) |
8.2 ± 1.48 |
6.8 ± 0.85‡ |
7.4 ± 0.89§ |
7.8 ± 0.98NS** |
| Prostaglandin E2 (nmol/day) | 3.62 ± 0.80 | 11.41 ± 1.65‡ | 8.02 ± 1.12‡ | 6.86 ± 0.99‡¶ |
*Abbreviations: LFA – low functioning autism; MFA– moderately functioning autism; HFA– high functioning autism; NS – Non-significant.
†Variables were examined using one-way ANOVA and symbols represent significant differences from post-hoc Bonferroni test.
‡P< 0.001 (control vs LFA, MFA and HFA).
§P = 0.001 (control vs MFA).
║P = 0.006 (control vs HFA).
¶P < 0.001 (LFA vs HFA).
**P = 0.001 (LFA vs HFA).