Little is known about use of early interventions for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Europe. Parents of children with ASD aged 7 years or younger (N=1680) were recruited through parent organisations in 18 European countries and completed an online survey about the interventions their child received. There was considerable variation in use of interventions and in some countries more than 20% of children received no intervention at all. The most frequently reported treatments were speech and language therapy (64%) and behavioural, developmental and relationship based treatments (55%). In some parts of Europe, use of behavioural, developmental and relationship-based interventions was associated with higher parental educational level and time passed since diagnosis, rather than USE OF INTERVENTION FOR CHILDREN WITH ASD IN EUROPE 2 with child characteristics. These findings highlight the need to monitor use of treatment for children with ASD in Europe in order to contrast inequalities.

TS translated the surveys into their native languages and disseminated them in their respective countries. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

Prevalence estimations for Autism Spectrum Disorder have been increasing over the past few years with rates now reported to be at 1:68.

Forty-one children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) receiving eclectic services were assessed twice during their preschool years. Measures were compared over time for the whole group and for diagnostic subgroups: Childhood autism (CA group) and Other PDDs group. The mean intelligence quotient/developmental quotient (IQ/DQ) of the whole group was stable (P = 0.209) and scores on the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) decreased (P = 0.001). At time 2, the CA group was more impaired than the other PDDs group: autistic symptoms were more severe (P = 0.01), adaptive behavior scores were lower (P = 0.014), and a trend for lower IQ/DQs (P = 0.06). Children in this study seemed to fare better than reported in previous follow-up studies on children with autism.

After analysing the results of studies conducted in Europe, it is unclear if higher prevalence estimates of ASDs among immigrants in this region reflect true differences, especially considering many potential confounding factors, e.g. genetic, biological, environmental and cultural. Considering the number of people migrating within Europe there is a substantial need to study further the prevalence of ASDs in immigrant groups.