Are there more austistic children and children with Pervasive Developmental Disorder in your experience?

Question

Have the numbers of these children gone up or is it a myth or a question of diagnosis?

Dolphin Mama and Lolabela I wonder if part of the reason for the epidemic is that men are having their children later and later.

Do you think information on the connection between older fathers 35-80 and a large part of the autism population is being withheld by the media because it is control by big pharma and others who profit from this epidemic?

Answer 1

Whether due to better diagnosing by doctors, greater general awareness in the community or a true increase in cases- Autism is going up. Where a few years ago it was a rare and almost unknown disorder affecting 1 in around 1000 - 1500 children, it now affects 1 in 166 children. It has been proven that the increase is not due to a loosening of diag. criteria, is not due to artificailly inflated statistics and that there is a true, rapid increase of cases. In fact, many feel that it was under reported or misdiagnosed in the past as mental retardation and still is today.
Autism and PDD are real and affect children in a real way. I know because my son has High Functioning Autism and I work with special needs children. And every day I meet more and more parents with young children recently diagnosed with it and it is startling and worrysome. I was a preschool teacher and never saw or heard of it until about 5-10 years ago. Now it is so common.
So, I would say in my experience as an educator and as a parent that yes, it is increasing and it is not a myth. And it is proven by more and more studies showing that conclusion.

Answer 2

There might be an increase but it is not as much of an increase as many want to claim. I would say the misdiagnosis of the past & the broadening of the diagnosis criterian of the present account for a big hunk of the increased diagnosis rate.

The CDC says “Data from several studies that used the current criteria for diagnosing autism and autism spectrum disorders (ASD), such as Asperger’s disorder and pervasive developmental disabilities (PDD-NOS), found prevalence rates for ASDs between 2 and 6 per 1,000 individuals. Therefore, it can be summarized that between 1 in 500 (2/1,000) to 1 in 166 children (6/1,000) have an ASD.”
Another study says that the new autism estimate is 5.5 out of 1,000 school age children. That is about 1 out of 182 , from a national surveys of tens of thousands of families.

- Epbr123 - I think you are referring to Asperger’s specifically. My niece (with classic autism) is 10 years old & can’t say her own name! That’s more than “a bit odd.”

- Blondie – Tell me, would your son have been diagnoses autistic 25 years ago? NO. Asperger’s & other high function autisms weren’t known to exist until the late 1980s. Would you have even heard of autism, & if you had, would you have taken him to the doctor & said “I think my son has autism?” NO! Not only was autism a relatively unknown condition, it was assumed to be caused by neglectful, unloving mothers, so you would not consider it a possibility. Now, somewhere between 60 - 82% of all people on the spectrum are diagnosed with Asperger's.

Your http://www.whale.to/a/autism_increase.html Site only shows the increase in diagnosed autism. It does not take into account the likelihood that most cases of autism 20 years ago were undiagnosed.

I am going to study your link to the M.I.N.D. Institute. Their first to stated findings do not make sense to me at all. How can they say that the recent (1990’s) loosening in the criteria used to make the diagnosis & the past misclassification of autistic kids as simply mentally retarded (not autistic) NOT have a significant effect on the diagnosis rate?

More studies need to be done on the poss. that older fathers are linked to autism. My brother was over 35 when both of his autistic children were born.

Answer 3

Yes. I've been working in autistic support for 13 years. When I started the stats were 1 in every 100,000. Now it is supposed to be 1 in every 166-250.

You have to remember that these numbers consist of kids who fall under the spectrum of PDD. That includes PDD-NOS (not otherwise specified), autism, Asperger's syndrome, Rhett's syndrome, and Childhood Disintegrative disorder. It includes a very broad range!!

I don't have a source anymore....but I did read that the diagnosis of Mental retardation has decreased 40-60% since the increase in PDD/ASD has occurred. I haven't had a child diagnosed with mental retardation in many years. Is it better diagnostic criteria? I'm not sure. Is autism reaching an epidemic level...ABSOLUTELY.

Answer 4

The numbers are going up, most likely because Autism is being finally recognized. When my son was diagnosed 18 years ago there was only one other person with autism in my area that I knew about. Now there are several. 1 in every 166 children are being diagnosed each day. Autism is definately a different road to travel in all aspects. I have "normal" kids as well and I have had to learn a lot over the years but to answer your question it seems to be more prevalent because of better diagnostic tools. Now if we can just get the right training for our kids the world would be so much sweeter.

Answer 5

Yes and no. Meaning while the doctors may be a bit quick at times to call it autism (especially quick with adhd), autism is pretty clear in the sense of seeing that something is going on. I can walk thru a grocery store and recognize autistic "traits" in people but that's because I know what to look for and know what to call it. If you've never seen "red " before, you don't recognize what it is.

Its a wide spectrum that varies, but 50 years ago, (perhaps 25 years ago) they had less diagnostic understanding - so is the chicken first or the egg?

I'm convinced that there are more cases diagnosed, because it is simply recognized now for what it is.

Markw
http://justadisability.com

Answer 6

Research the topic at the Centers for Disease Control and Epidemiology. The rate of occurrence of pervasive developmental disorder including disorders of the autism spectrum and more recently specifically Aspbergers, have been scientifically studied with statistical evidence of an increasing rate of recognition. Researchers have speculated that diagnosticians have improved their awareness and labeled persons with autism- (rather than schizophrenia) more accurately but all indications point to an alarmingly fast rate of increase. Diagnosticians are now required to report the each case to the CDC as it is considered to be increasing at an epidemic porportion. Various environmental factors such as fetal exposure, pollution, vaccines, chemical toxins, pesticides, and nutritional factors and genetic mutations have been proposed; however, the source is yet to be identified.

Answer 7

Well, I think that it combines a little of all.... doctors are diagnosing it more, because the general public is more aware and looking out for symptoms, and the rate is going up on its own. With all the publicity in the general public, and information being handed out from doctor's offices and preschools to parents- parents are more aware of it. But I truly think that the incidence of the disability has gone up as well. I work at a preschool for children with disabilities, and in our area there are over 1000 new cases diagnosed per month. That's crazy! So, I think the answer is a little of both.

Answer 8

Autism is being discovered in more children because it is recognized. 1 in 100 children have some type of autism. I personally do not believe in ADD and ADHD. That's just a solution for a doctor who sticks a child on Ritalin and doesn't go after what is the actual cause of the behavior.

Answer 9

I've worked with a lot of special needs children, and it sounds as though you're absolutely right to be concerned. I'm surprised that EI failed to evaluate him, particularly since a lack of language skills is a sure sign of some developmental difficulty. They didn't agree to a home visit? I would definately consult your pediatrician to see if you can't get some official documentation on these symptoms and then approach EI again, as soon he won't be eligable. Good luck!

Answer 10

More children and adults are being diagnosed then ever before. It is unclear if the numbers themselves have increased. The research is not very conclusive or voluminous at this time. Check out Apergers Syndrome as well. The environment is also being sited as a contributor. Again, nothing in conclusive at this time.