Some prenatal factors known to contribute to growth retardation include a variety of maternal health problems, including toxemia, kidney and heart disease, infections such as rubella and maternal malnutrition.
Rubella, also called German measles or three-day measles, is a highly contagious viral disease that in most children and adults causes mild symptoms of low fever, swollen glands, joint pain, and a fine red rash.
Although rubella causes only mild symptoms in child and adult sufferers, the infection can have severe complications for the fetus of a woman who becomes infected with the virus during the first trimester of pregnancy.
Women should avoid becoming pregnant for three months after taking rubella vaccine, measles vaccine, mumps vaccine, or the combined measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) as these vaccines may cause problems in the unborn baby.
Autism has also been shown to occur more frequently among individuals who have certain medical conditions, including fragile X syndrome, tuberous sclerosis, congenital rubella syndrome, and untreated phenylketonuria.