The relationship between camouflaging and mental health in autistic children and adolescents.

Camouflaging involves the masking of autistic traits in social situations. While camouflaging may function as a potential barrier to the early diagnosis of autism, minimal research into camouflaging in autistic young people has been conducted. It is also important to evaluate the impact of camouflaging on the mental health of autistic children and adolescents. This study evaluated camouflaging in a sample of 359 female and 374 male autistic children and adolescents (4-17 years, 48.9% females). Findings indicated that camouflaging was a significant predictor of internalizing (i.e., anxiety, depression, somatic complaints) symptoms, when controlling for age, gender, and IQ. We also found evidence for some gender differences in camouflaging. Parents endorsed more autistic traits for females compared with males, whereas there were no differences in autistic traits across sex in the clinician-administered assessment. There was also evidence for a relationship between age and camouflaging, with adolescents showing a larger discrepancy between parent and clinician reported autistic traits. This has implications for clinical assessment and future research and is important for understanding how best to support the mental health of autistic children and adolescents.

A Systematic Review of the Sex and Gender Reporting in COVID-19 Clinical Trials.

Sex and gender have implications for COVID-19 vaccine efficacy and adverse effects from the vaccine. As vaccination is one of the key responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is vital that sex and gender differences be acknowledged, measured, and analysed in clinical research. Here, we systematically review published COVID-19 vaccine trials, both interventional and observational, to assess the quality of reporting of sex and gender. Of the 75 clinical trials on COVID-19 vaccines included in this review, only 24% presented their main outcome data disaggregated by sex, and only 13% included any discussion of the implications of their study for women and men. Considering the sex differences in adverse events after vaccination, and the gendered aspects of vaccine hesitancy, these oversights in clinical research on vaccines have implications for recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and for wider public health.