Just last week I read that it could be caused by an older father: http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-older-fath...
It could be that men with some medical condition are both likely to father an autistic child and to postpone child-rearing for health reasons. Heck, the autism itself in a very mild form might be such condition - a mildly autistic man could be likely to pass more severe autism to his children, and have problems finding a mate.