Exactly one year ago I did a blog on this topic. At that time, I agreed with Amy Daniels, the assistant director for public health research at Autism Speaks, a New York City-based advocacy group, when she said in a CBS News interview that a significant part of the increase in autism has resulted from changes in diagnosis and reporting and not due to an actual increase in frequency of the disorder.
Daniels was speaking about results of a Danish study that last year attributed the rise in cases of children diagnosed with autism to the redefinition of what autism is and how it is reported. I agreed then, and I agree now that the “big jump” in the numbers of children diagnosed is due to more inclusive diagnostic criteria, and that leads to an increase in numbers.
Now, again a year later, we have a new study from the CDC that is reporting a “big jump in the number of children with autism.” The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics is reporting that about one in 45 children between the ages of 3 and 17 have autism. The previous report by the CDC was one in 68 children. The CDC’s reasoning for the significant increase in numbers is due to the way they presented the questions in the National Survey of Children’s Health. The surveys from 2011 to 2013 reported that 1.25% of children had some level of autism. In 2014, the number jumped to 2.24% – a significant increase. The reason for the increase? The CDC is attributing it to survey techniques and how the questions were worded to parents.
In a report filed on the NBC News (11/13, Fox) website Benjamin Zablotsky, an epidemiologist at the National Center for Health Statistics who helped lead the study said, “One in 45 is what we think is the most accurate parental report of autism to date. I think within this report we found that the way that we ask the parents about autism spectrum disorder can have an impact on the way the parents respond to the question.” Thus, the children have not changed just how we make a diagnosis. This, of course, begs the questions about over diagnosis by over inclusion.
What other research is showing is that autism is simply being recognized and diagnosed more often and that children who were classified with something broad like pervasive developmental disorder are being reclassified to the more specific autism.
Regardless of where we stand on the academics of this debate if you suspect that your child has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), you should schedule your child to see a child psychiatrist for proper diagnosis. If your child has an ASD, there are medications for some of the behavioral issues and alternative therapies that can help as well.
With an ASD diagnosis, parents will also have to reach out to the school district to have the proper classifications and education plan implemented. In some cases, depending on the severity of the diagnosis, a child may have to attend a specialized program/school outside of the public school system. The school, along with a child’s pediatrician and psychiatrist will be instrumental in designing and implementing the proper program.
On my blog, “I think my child might be on the spectrum” you will find more information on the ASD and the symptoms to look for.
LINKS:
Dr. Henry Paul — Autism – What is really behind the rising numbers?
AP — Latest US estimate suggests 1 in 45 children have autism
USA Today — Study Finds more than 2% of children have autism
Los Angeles Times — 1 in 45: New autism statistic suggests children with condition may have been undercounted
DISCLAIMER
The information contained in this blog is intended for educational purposes only. It is not intended as medical or psychiatric advice for individual conditions or treatment and does not substitute for a medical or psychiatric examination. A psychiatrist must make a determination about any treatment or prescription. Dr. Paul does not assume any responsibility or risk for the use of any information contained within this blog.