The N170 as a potential marker for differential diagnosis between Autism and High Intellectual Potential in early childhood

Autism Spectrum Conditions and High Intellectual Potential (or ‘giftedness’) share similar clinical features in early childhood, including alterations in sensory perception and difficulties with social interaction. This overlap in symptomatology often makes it difficult for clinicians to distinguish between these two conditions. Differentiating between autism and giftedness early in life is essential to accommodate the specific needs and emphasize the strengths of children with these conditions. This study explored the potential use of the N170 as a marker for social visual processing in the differential diagnosis between autism and intellectual giftedness in early childhood. EEG data from a face-house paradigm recorded 6 years were acquired from 63 participants from the YOUth database. Participants were allocated to a HIP (n=22), ASC (n=20) or typical development group (n=21) based on autism- and giftedness-likelihood estimated by intelligence (WPPSI), social responsiveness (SRS-A) and emotional, behavior and physical challenges (CBCL). Multivariate pattern analysis with a binary support vector machine classifier was used to decode the two stimulus categories. Average decoding accuracy in a predetermined N170 time window (100–300 ms) was calculated for each participant and compared between groups using a one-way ANOVA. Decoding accuracy was significantly above chance in all conditions within the most of the N170 window and significantly lower in children with an elevated likelihood of ASC, but similar in children with HIP and NTD. Therefore, the N170 response to faces may serve as a potential marker in the differential diagnosis between HIP and ASC conditions in early childhood. Future studies are suggested to include larger, clinical, and longitudinal data.