Evaluating Changes in the Prevalence of the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs)

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are estimated to occur among about one percent of children in the United States. This estimate is in line with estimates from other industrialized countries. However, the identified prevalence of ASDs has increased significantly in a short time period based on data from multiple studies including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network. Whether increases in ASD prevalence are partly attributable to a true increase in the risk of developing ASD or solely to changes in community awareness and identification patterns is not known. It is clear that more children are identified with an ASD now than in the past and the impact on individuals, families, and communities is significant. However, disentangling the many potential reasons for ASD prevalence increases has been challenging. Understanding the relative contribution of multiple factors such as variation in study methods, changes in diagnostic and community identification,

Resting-State Functional Connectivity in Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Review

“…The underlying cause of ASD’s increasing prevalence is contentiously debated with suggestions of both environmental and genetic contributions. Other contributing factors include changes to diagnostic and clinical criteria, greater efficacy of screening methods, and increased recognition of the disorder by parents and the medical community (7). …”

Inter-Pregnancy Intervals and the Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder: Results of a Population-Based Study

“…Rises in the reported prevalence and awareness of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in recent years (CDC 2008; Croen et al 2002) have led to increased interest in identifying potentially modifiable risk factors for this neurodevelopmental disorder (Rice et al 2013). One such risk factor, suggested in a large, California birth cohort study (Cheslack-Postava, et al 2011) and recently replicated in a cohort study from Norway (Gunnes, et al 2013), is pregnancy spacing or, more specifically, a short interval between the birth of one child and the conception of the next.…”

“…It would also point to the need for further studies to understand the mechanisms underlying the association. Because both short and long IPIs are associated with a number of perinatal complications, such as low birth weight and preterm birth (Zhu, et al 1999; Conde-Agudelo, et al 2006), which are themselves risk factors for ASD (Rice, et al 2013), this study also evaluated whether any associations between IPI and ASD risk were independent of documented perinatal complications…”

Age of Parental Concern, Diagnosis, and Service Initiation Among Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

“…The number of children diagnosed with ASD has greatly increased in the past decade (Blumberg et al, 2013; CDC, 2014), in part due to increased awareness and a broader conceptualization of ASD (King and Bearman, 2009; Matson and Shoemaker, 2009; Ozonoff et al, 2009; Rice et al, 2012) --- factors likely to influence the use and age of ASD diagnosis. Coincident with the rise in identified ASD is an increasing demand for early detection, evaluation, and treatment of ASD and other developmental disorders (Crane and Winsler, 2008).…”