Randomized, Placebo-controlled, Double-blind Study of Increasing Total Antioxidant Capacity with Vitamin E and C in Two Cohorts of Patients with Autism Spectrum Disorders

The continuation of ASD throughout life makes all efforts to optimize the abilities of children with ASD as early as possible so that their quality of life becomes better important. Management to improve current symptoms and overcome aberrant behavior in children with ASD generally focuses on behavioral intervention, psychotherapy and even pharmacotherapy, but the results are not satisfactory because it takes time, is expensive and unexpected side effects often occur after administering pharmacotherapy. On the other hand, research related to the role of oxidative stress has suggested a potential relationship between oxidative stress and autism pathophysiology that is not correlated with age and the underlying pathogenesis, but damage caused by oxidative stress will exacerbate dysfunction in children with ASD through chronic inflammatory responses, DNA and protein damage and mitochondrial superoxide production. Oxidative stress will influence the clinical symptoms and pathogenesis of ASD. Therefore, efforts to control the balance of oxidative stress to improve symptoms and neuropsychological deficits in patients with ASD are important. Lack of antioxidant capacity in children with ASD to neutralize and remove oxidants has been associated with the severity of clinical symptoms and aberrant behavior in children with ASD. Therefore, efforts to increase antioxidant capacity through providing antioxidants can offer a new strategy for dealing with accompanying symptoms in children with ASD.

Vitamin E and Vitamin C are non-enzymatic antioxidants which function to strengthen the work of enzymatic antioxidants in the oxidant-elimination, oxidation-reduction cycle process that occurs in the brain. Its includes in group of antioxidants which also referred as chain breaking. When used together with vitamin C which can function as a water-soluble antioxidant and other enzyme cofactors, reduced vitamin C can directly regenerate vitamin E which simultaneously undergoes oxidation to become ascorbate. Therefore, the use of vitamin C will be more effective when used together with vitamin E. Research has shown that administration with antioxidants such as vitamin E and vitamin C has a good effect on clinical symptoms and behavior in children with ASD.

In this randomized controlled trial (RCT), patients with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) who have received Risperidone and Behavior Therapy as maintenance therapy will be randomly assigned to receive either a placebo or a combination of Vitamins E (150-200 IU per day) and C (100-200 mg per day) for a duration of 3 months. This study was designed to verify whether increasing the TAC using Vitamin E and C improves clinical symptoms, aberrant behaviors, and quality of life in children with ASD.

This study shall include 50 patients with ASD, aged 3-9 years old. The study design of this RCT was balanced to all of patients treated with maintenance therapy as usual, so that half of the patients will receive placebo, and the remaining half will receive Vitamin E and C during 3 months. The purpose is to observe whether the increase of TAC could improve the clinical symptoms, aberrant behavior and quality of life in ASD patients. In addition to clinical and psychometric parameters, TAC will be measured at baseline, after 6 weeks and 12 weeks, by collecting 30-60 ml of fresh urine, a general urinalysis examination to rule out acute urinary tract infections, The TAC examination is carried out when the urine pH is normal and measurement with a calorimetric kit with enzyme method, ABTS.