Effects of vitamin B6 on averaged evoked potentials in infantile autism.

In autistic children, averaged evoked potentials have been reported to have lower amplitudes and shorter latencies than those of normal children. Also, moderate clinical improvement has been observed in some autistic children after treatment with vitamin B6 and magnesium. We have studied biochemical and electrophysiological effects of vitamin B6 and magnesium in 12 autistic children and in 11 normal children. During treatment of the autistic children with B6, an increase of amplitude of middle-latency evoked potentials and a decrease of urinary homovanillic acid were found. The reverse was noted in the normal subjects.