Should we be worried because of the rise in autism cases?

The number of diagnosed cases of autism has risen dramatically: from a rare condition, autism has become a common reality for 1 in 36 children.

This dramatic increase has caught the attention of the public and professionals.

While some see cause for concern, many doctors believe that factors such as awareness and earlier diagnosis are contributing to the increase in the number of cases.

But we all still have much to learn about autism, which wasn’t officially recognized by Congress as a disabling condition until 1990.

“I think the fact that autism cases are increasing reflects a healthy trend of increasing public awareness and increasing public understanding and understanding of autism,” said Zhenghan Qi, associate professor of communication sciences and disorders and psychology at Northeastern University.

The most important change from the recent past is that today, doctors are much better at screening and identifying children with autism.

They have also changed the criteria for what it means to have autism. Doctors now recognize that autism is not just a disease. It’s a spectrum. So the change in the number of cases may just be a difference in wording.

What is autism and when was it discovered?

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, autism is a neurological and developmental disorder that affects how people interact with others, communicate and learn.

First described by Dr. Leo Kanner in 1943, symptoms of autism typically appear in the first two years of life and include delayed language development, avoidance of eye contact, obsessive interests and unusual body movements such as rocking or flapping of the arms.

Since then, our understanding of what autism is has changed dramatically.

What are the main signs of autism?

According to Qi, the most recent change came in 2013, when the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, identified Asperger’s syndrome as a type of high-functioning autism, and other changes occurred.

In addition, doctors now recognize that autism can affect people with other disorders as well as Down syndrome and attention deficit disorder, further expanding the ranks of autistic people, Qi said.

The increase in the number of autistic people can also be attributed to the growing recognition that the disorder occurs in people of different ethnicities and cultures, she said.

“Most studies before 2000 and in the early 21st century were conducted primarily in middle-class and white populations,” she says.

How are cases of autism diagnosed?

There is now also increased awareness that both girls and boys can have autism, although boys are still four times more likely to be diagnosed.

Inherited genetic mutations, older parents and improved survival rates for premature babies are also contributing to the rise in autism cases, researchers said, but much more needs to be understood about the underlying causes of this brain disorder.

In general, professionals have gotten much better at identifying children at earlier stages because they have better screening tools and a better understanding of what is of concern and what is not on some of these different indicators.

In the case of autism, there is no blood test to diagnose it. There is no objective marker. Ultimately it just comes down to human judgment based on selection criteria. So in this case it is up to the doctor.

General screening

In 2007, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended universal screening for autism at 18 and 24 months of age so that children can receive early intervention services that can make a difference in their education and lives.

Screening is becoming increasingly standardized.

Among the screening tools are the M-CHAT-R/F, or Modified Checklist of Autism Symptoms in Toddlers, Revised (with follow-up), which was based on a test revised in 2009, and the POSI, the Parent Observation of Social Interaction scale first published in 2013.

According to Qi, providing parents with a checklist of traits to look for is important because by doing so, children can receive services at an early age that will help them succeed in school and in life.

Early intervention is the absolute key to success.

Paley European Institute Poland,WarsawLeave a request

Matzpen Mental Health Center Israel,Tel-Aviv 5.00 (1 review)Leave a request

Published: 17.03.2025

Updated: 16.03.2025

Medical author, Medical editor:

Stepan Yuk

Medical expert:

PhD. Olexandr Voznyak