Haloperidol-related dyskinesias and pre- and perinatal complications in autistic children

It has been hypothesized that an association exists between pre- and perinatal complications, central nervous system (CNS) dysfunction, and the development of tardive (TD) and withdrawal dyskinesias (WD). We assessed the relationship between pre- and perinatal complications and TD/WD in a sample of 118 children with autism who participated in an ongoing long-term prospective study of the efficacy and safety of haloperidol. Anesthesia during delivery was more frequent in children who developed TD/WD (25 of 40, 62.5%) than in those who did not (30 of 78, 38.5%) (p = .019). Six of 7 males with short labor developed TD/WD (p = .007). Pre- and perinatal complications appear to be related to the development of TD/WD in this sample of children.