Visual systemizing preference in children with autism: A randomized controlled trial of intranasal oxytocin

What Was Tested

Researchers studied Oxytocin in this randomized controlled trial publication.

The researchers therefore developed an automated eye-tracking task to test whether children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to matched controls display a visual preference for more highly organized and structured (systemized) real-life images.

Why It Was Studied

Little is known, however, about its effects on nonsocial manifestations, such as restricted interests and repetitive behaviors.

Then, as part of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study, the researchers examined the effect of intranasal oxytocin on systemizing preferences in 16 male children with ASD, compared with 16 matched controls.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 16 children taking part.

The age groups tagged for this paper are children and teenagers, men only.

How the Study Was Run

In design terms this was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled and crossover study.

The children were allocated by chance, so the Oxytocin group and the comparison group should start out alike.

Neither the children nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Oxytocin, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

The comparison arm used a placebo, so changes seen with Oxytocin could be set against what happens without it.

Each person switched between Oxytocin and the comparison at some point, usually with a gap in between.

What Was Measured

The subject headings attached to it are Autism Spectrum Disorder, Choice Behavior, Fixation, Ocular, Oxytocin and Pattern Recognition, Visual.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Oxytocin in 16 children.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

The publication is from 2018 (Development and psychopathology), a journal based in United States.

More context: the Oxytocin compound page, all human trials.