Case report from Buenos Aires, Argentina, that has only been published in Spanish:
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You can see an English translation below.
You can find the Spanish original below the English version.
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TRANSLATION:
Autistic regression in an infant born to a strict vegetarian mother: vitamin B12 deficiency
An 8-month-old child born to a strict vegetarian [the article does not say whether this means vegan] mother had normal psychomotor development until 6 months of age. From then on, a stagnation in achieving devlopmental milestones was observed. He arrived at our clinic in a state of being apathetic, disinterested in his surroundings, with poor eye contact, involuntary movements with the hands, and mild hypotonia [being "flopps"]. The blood tests indicated megaloblastic anemia [red blood cells are too large], but convulsions [seizures, cramping] were not observed, and the EEG was normal. After ruling out metabolic disorders [i.e., non-diet related, genetic factors], toxins, or autoimmune disease, and taking into account that the child was exclusively breastfed and that his mother was a strict vegetarian, we thought of vitamin B12 deficiency, which can be associated with autistic regression. Once this deficiency was confirmed, vitamin supplementation was started and the child began to improve and reached typical development within a few months [29,30]. We would like to emphasize the importance of an adequate anamnesis, including the mother's dietary habits, in all infants, since the deterioration is reversible, if recognized and treated in time. Furthermore, all vegetarian women should have strict clinical and nutritional controls [they probably mean health assessment, blood tests, and dietary counselling] during pregnancy to avoid vitamin deficiencies, including vitamin B12 deficieny.
SPANISH ORIGINAL:
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Regresión autista en un lactante de madre vegetariana estricta: deficiencia de vitamina B12
Un niño de 8 meses, hijo de madre vegetariana estricta, presentó un desarrollo psicomotor normal hasta los 6 meses de vida, y se observó a partir de ese momento un estancamiento en la adquisición de pautas madurativas. Llegó a nuestra consulta apático, desinteresado por el entorno, con pobre contacto visual, estereotipias manuales y leve hipotonía. En los estudios analíticos de sangre detectamos anemia megaloblástica, sin haber presentado convulsiones, con un EEG normal. Después de descartar metabolopatías, tóxicos o fenómenos autoinmunes, y teniendo en cuenta que el niño se alimentaba exclusivamente con leche materna y que su madre era vegetariana estricta, pensamos en deficiencia de vitamina B12, la cual puede asociarse a regresión autista. Confirmada dicha deficiencia, se inició aporte vitamínico y el niño comenzó a mejorar y llegó a un desarrollo típico en pocos meses [29,30]. Queremos enfatizar la importancia de una adecuada anamnesis, incluyendo hábitos alimentarios de la madre, en todo lactante, dado que el deterioro reconocido y tratado a tiempo es reversible. Por otra parte, toda mujer vegetariana debería tener controles clínicos y nutricionales estrictos durante la gestación para evitar déficits vitamínicos, incluyendo la vitamina B12."
Reference:
Víctor L. Ruggieri, Claudia L. Arberas: Regresión autista: aspectos clínicos y etiológicos [Autistic regression: clinical and aetiological aspects][Article in Spanish], Revista de Neurologia. 2018 Mar 1;66(S01):S17-S23. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29516448/