Stoppage refers to changes in reproductive behavior following the birth of a child with a severe disease. The presence of stoppage can bias estimates of sibling recurrence risk if not properly addressed. If stoppage occurs non-randomly (differential stoppage), it is possibly an additional source of bias in sibling recurrence risk estimation. This study investigated whether stoppage occurs in Danish families with a firstborn child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, and if stoppage was differential. We found that stoppage occurs moderately in Danish families affected by autism spectrum disorders, and that stoppage is differential. However, differential stoppage is a minor source of estimation bias in Danish sibling recurrence risk studies of autism spectrum disorders.
Keywords: Autism spectrum disorder; Sibling recurrence risk; Stoppage.