Brian Lee, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics; Research Fellow, A.J. Drexel Autism Institute

Expertise autism epidemiology public health health

Lee's research interests include the epidemiology of neurological development, maintenance and decline. Current topics include prenatal environmental exposures and autism risk; neighborhoods and psychosocial "stress" in the cognitive decline of older adults; lead toxicity and white matter health; gene-environment interaction; maternal antibody exposure in utero and fetal outcomes.

For news media inquiries, contact Greg Richter at gdr33@drexel.edu or 215.895.2617.

More About Lee

In The News

Giant Study Questions Link Between Autism and Maternal Health

Jan 31, 2025

Brian Lee, PhD, a professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was quoted in a Jan. 31 Science article about new data on maternal health and autism in children.

Acetaminophen Use in Pregnancy Does Not Increase Risk of Autism or ADHD, Study Finds

Apr 15, 2024

Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was quoted in an April 15 Parents magazine article about Lee’s recently published study finding no link between acetaminophen use in pregnancy and increased risk of autism or ADHD.

Acetaminophen Use in Pregnancy Not Linked to Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Large Study Finds

Apr 9, 2024

Research from Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in Drexel’s Dornsife School of Public Health and fellow at the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, that found no evidence to support a causal link between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and increased risk of autism, ADHD and intellectual disability in children, was featured in April 9 stories by CNN, MedPage Today, NBC News, HealthDay, WCBS-TV (New York), HCP Live, WWL-Radio (New Orleans), Healio, KMOV-TV (St. Louis), WKRC-TV (Cincinnati), Healthline, and Parent Herald, among other outlets nationwide.

The Link Between Maternal Infection and Autism, Explained

Dec 13, 2022

Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was quoted in a Dec. 13 Spectrum News article on the possible link between maternal infection and the likelihood of an autism diagnosis.

U.K. Health Authority Investigates Epilepsy Drug’s Link to Autism

Aug 30, 2022

Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was quoted in an Aug. 30 story in The Scientist (UK) about a UK health care agency looking into a possible link between an epilepsy drug and autism.

Anorexia Before or During Pregnancy Linked To Having a Child With Autism

Feb 7, 2022

Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was quoted in a Feb. 7 Spectrum News article about new data suggesting that women with anorexia nervosa before or during pregnancy have an increased chance of having a child with autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Environmental Factors Don't Explain Rise in Autism Prevalence

May 22, 2020

Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was quoted in a May 22 article in The Scientist about a large twin study in Sweden finding that the contributions of genetics and environment on an autism diagnosis have held steady over multiple decades.

Autism Heritability: It Probably Does Not Mean What You Think It Means

Jan 7, 2020

Brian Lee, PhD, an associate professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health and fellow in the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, authored a Jan. 7 Spectrum news article about how best to define autism heritability and why researchers need to look deeper into how environment may influence autism risk.

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Children Exposed to Antiseizure Meds During Pregnancy Face Neurodevelopmental Risks, Drexel Study Finds

Nov 15, 2024

Children born to mothers who take antiseizure medications to manage seizures and psychiatric conditions during pregnancy may face increased risks of neurodevelopmental conditions, according to new data from researchers at Drexel’s Dornsife School of Public Health.

No Link Between Acetaminophen Use During Pregnancy and Children’s Risk of Autism, ADHD, and Intellectual Disability, Says Large Sibling Study from Drexel University and Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet

Apr 9, 2024

In the largest study to date on the subject, researchers found no evidence to support a causal link between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and increased risk of autism, ADHD and intellectual disability in children. The findings, using data from a nationwide cohort of over 2.4 million children born in Sweden, including siblings not exposed to the drug before birth, were published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) from researchers at Drexel’s Dornsife School of Public Health and Karolinska Institutet of Sweden.

Multivitamin Use During Pregnancy Linked to Lower Risk of Autism With Intellectual Disability

Oct 5, 2017

Taking a multivitamin during pregnancy was linked to a 30 percent decrease in risk of a child developing autism with an intellectual disorder, according to a new Drexel University study.

A pregnant woman in a blue dress holding her stomach.

Antidepressant Use in Pregnant Women Linked to Small Increase in Autism

Jul 24, 2017

Antidepressant use in pregnant women was linked to increased cases of autism in their children, though the trend actually appeared to be relatively small, effecting just 2 percent of children with diagnoses.

Students studying from binders at a table.

Parental Depression Negatively Affects Children’s School Performance

Feb 3, 2016

A study led by Drexel researchers found that parental depression was associated with diminished school performance in children.

Google search trends for the term "autism" from 2010 through 2014, showing peaks in searches in April of each year.

Awareness Month Spurs Web Searches for Autism

Jun 26, 2014

Autism Awareness Month each April brings blue lights and blue ribbons out to shine in many communities – but does it actually lead to increased autism awareness? According to a new analysis of web search trends by researchers at Drexel University, it does appear to drive an increase in Google searches for autism – by a third over searches in March in recent years.

Autism rates were about double in children born to mothers who took an SSRI during pregnancy, compared to children of mothers who didn't -- but overall rates were extremely low in both groups.

In Utero Exposure to Antidepressants May Influence Autism Risk

Jun 2, 2014

A new study from researchers at Drexel University adds evidence that using common antidepressant medications during pregnancy may contribute to a higher risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children, although this risk is still very small.

Generalized additive model estimates of probability of ASD by maternal and paternal age (years) in the Stockholm Youth Cohort. The 95% CIs are indicated by dashed lines. Based on Idring et al., International Journal of Epidemiology

Child's Autism Risk Accelerates with Mother's Age Over 30

Apr 22, 2014

A recent study from researchers from the Drexel University School of Public Health in Philadelphia and Karolinska Institute in Sweden provides more insight into how the higher risk of having a child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among older parents varies between mothers’ and fathers’ ages, and found that the risk of having a child with both ASD and intellectual disability is larger for older parents.

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