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Oxytocin and Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
Abstract
Aim: Oxytocin presents an exciting potential to target the core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) pharmacologically in an easily administered, cost-effective form with possibly minimal adverse effects. But, there are still major gaps in this area of research. This paper reviewed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) examining the effects of oxytocin administration on social cognition and restricted, repetitive behaviors in individuals with an ASD. Method: Electronic literature searches were conducted from PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Knowledge, and EMBASE for RCTs published through June 2015. Results: 12 RCTs were included in this review. 7 out of the 11 studies that examined social cognition reported improvements. Additionally, one out of the 4 studies on restricted, repetitive behaviors, reported improvements following oxytocin administration. However, results from our meta-analyses suggest that oxytocin has no significant effect on these 2 domains. Conclusion: Previous evidence revealed mixed findings about the effects of oxytocin on ASD. Given the limited number of RCTs, our summary of findings on the effectiveness of oxytocin on ASD should still be considered tentative.
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In the citing paper
“The inconsistent results among these various investigations may have been the result of limited power or differences in participant age, oxytocin formulation or dose, treatment duration, outcome measures, or analytic methods.22–24”
From Intranasal Oxytocin in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (2021) · cites this paper as [23]
In the citing paper
“Several clinical studies have also investigated the potential of intranasal oxytocin as a treatment for socio-cognitive, behavioral, and socio-affective symptoms of ASD. So far, these studies cannot provide a certain conclusion about oxytocin’s therapeutic potential43–47.”
From Randomized clinical trial shows no substantial modulation of empathy-related neural activation by intranasal oxytocin in autism (2021) · cites this paper as [44]
In the citing paper
“However, it must be noted that our sample is larger than the average sample size of previous studies examining oxytocin effects on brain function in ASD44, and comparable to the average sample size in clinical trials examining oxytocin effects across different neurodevelopmental disorders83.”
From Randomized clinical trial shows no substantial modulation of empathy-related neural activation by intranasal oxytocin in autism (2021) · cites this paper as [44]
In the citing paper
“Importantly, our findings are in line with recent meta-analytical evidence indicating that intranasal oxytocin only leads to small but non-significant changes in overall social cognition in ASD44, but has no significant effect on emotion recognition and empathy83.”
From Randomized clinical trial shows no substantial modulation of empathy-related neural activation by intranasal oxytocin in autism (2021) · cites this paper as [44]
In the citing paper
“Importantly, our findings are in line with recent meta-analytical evidence indicating that intranasal oxytocin only leads to small but non-significant changes in overall social cognition in ASD44, but has no significant effect on emotion recognition and empathy83.”
From Randomized clinical trial shows no substantial modulation of empathy-related neural activation by intranasal oxytocin in autism (2021) · cites this paper as [44]
In the citing paper
“Although only minimal adverse events have been reported in oxytocin ASD trials to date,69 it is still crucial to determine the lowest efficacious dose to limit adverse events and exposure to widely distributed peripheral oxytocin receptors.70”
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Intranasal Oxytocin in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Sikich, L., Kolevzon, A., King, B. H., McDougle, C. J., Sanders, K. B., Kim, S.-J., Spanos, M., Chandrasekhar, T., Trelles, M. D. P., Rockhill, C. M., et al. (2021) · New England Journal of Medicine · doi:10.1056/nejmoa2103583 · Cited by 298
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA): An essential nutrient and a nutraceutical for brain health and diseases
Sun, G. Y., Simonyi, Á., Fritsche, K. L., Chuang, D. Y., Hannink, M., Gu, Z., Greenlief, C. M., Yao, J. K., Lee, J. C., & Beversdorf, D. Q. (2017) · Prostaglandins Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids · doi:10.1016/j.plefa.2017.03.006 · Cited by 324
Marotta, R., Risoleo, M. C., Messina, G., Parisi, L., Carotenuto, M., Vetri, L., & Roccella, M. (2020) · Brain Sciences · doi:10.3390/brainsci10030163 · Cited by 279
“However, a recent meta-analysis that reviewed randomized controlled trials on ASD symptomatology did reveal that there was no benefit of oxytocin over placebo and provided further proof to support existing evidence [125].”
BackgroundSignalling pathways in autism spectrum disorder: mechanisms and therapeutic implications
Jiang, C.-C., Lin, L., Long, S., Ke, X., Fukunaga, K., Lu, Y., & Han, F. (2022) · Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy · doi:10.1038/s41392-022-01081-0 · Cited by 295
Lai, M.-C., Anagnostou, E., Wiznitzer, M., Allison, C., & Baron-Cohen, S. (2020) · The Lancet Neurology · doi:10.1016/s1474-4422(20)30034-x · Cited by 250
Metadata
- Authors
- Ooi, Y., Weng, S.-J., Kossowsky, J., Gerger, H., & Sung, M.
- Affiliations
- University of Basel (CH)
- National University of Singapore (SG)
- Boston Children's Hospital (US)
- Institute of Mental Health (SG)
- Corresponding author
- Ooi, Yoon
- Venue
- Pharmacopsychiatry
- Publisher
- Georg Thieme Verlag KG
- Published
- 2016-08-30
- Volume
- 50
- Issue
- 01
- Pages
- 5-13
- ISSN
- 0176-3679 (ISSN-L)
- 1439-0795
- OpenAlex
- W2514055214
- Cited by
- 131
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 30 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 2
- FWCI
- 1.88
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Pharmacopsychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Genetics and Neurodevelopmental Disorders
- Keywords
- oxytocin, autism spectrum disorder, social cognition, restricted and repetitive behaviors, pharmacotherapy, treatment effectiveness
- MeSH terms
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Humans, Oxytocics, Oxytocin, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Databases, Bibliographic
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