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New Autism/Aspergers Rapid ABC Screening Test Advised @ 15 Months
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by Jacob Zinn | March 24, 2010 at 09:20 am
3321 views | 11 Recommendations | 1 comment
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A new screening test is being proposed for toddlers aged 15-30 months to check for symptoms of autism and Asperger syndrome.
Developed by Emory Autism Center and Georgia Tech University, The Rapid ABC—Rapid Attention Back and Forth Communication Test—screens children for traits of autism spectrum disorders.
Experts use 5 activities to test gesturing, attention, body language and eye contact. They check the subject’s responses to having his name called, flipping through a book and playing games.
The analysis is being used in the wake of new recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics, urging parents to have their children screened at younger ages. Many doctors feel kids should be screened at 15 months, 18 months, 24 months and 30 months—and more if they are high-risk.
Autism and Aspergers Testing Now Faster with Rapid ABC
Previous autism evaluations took 2 to 4 hours and no blood test could determine if a child had the disorder. The new preliminary test takes 5 minutes and can be done as early as 15 months.
A computer program determines if an autism spectrum disorder is suspected and experts can conduct further testing on vision, hearing and the nervous system.
There really isn't something quick and rapid like the ABC out there where pediatricians can interact for just 3 to 5 minutes,” said Jenny Mathys, a social worker at the Emory Autism Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
Autism spectrum disorders, or ASDs, are developmental disabilities in communication and social behaviour, including language delays. Signs usually emerge in children under the age of 3. An estimated 1 in 110 U.S. children has an autism spectrum disorder.
Study Finds Undiagnosed Autistic Disorders in Children
Many children with autistic traits don’t get the support they need because they aren’t definitively diagnosed with the disorder.
A study published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry found that undiagnosed children aged 1 to 12 who displayed the same autistic traits—repetitive behaviours, impaired social interaction and communication difficulties— as children who had been diagnosed much earlier and received support from their schools or health services.
ASD diagnosis currently holds the key to unlocking intervention from school systems and health programs,” said lead researcher Ginny Russell. “Perhaps these resources should be extended and available for children who show autistic impairments but remain undiagnosed.
The study also reveals a gender bias in diagnosis, finding that boys are more likely to be labeled with an autistic spectrum disorder than girls with the same symptoms.
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Jacob Zinn
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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at 23:45 on May 9th, 2010
Hello! My daughter who is 15 years old now did not put sentences together until she was 3 years old. I repeatedly told the pediatrician something was wrong, but his response was always that it was because she was growing up in a bilingual household (I spoke english to Isabel and her father spoke portuguese to her) I told the pediatrician if that were true she would be speaking at least ONE language, and she wasn't! I communicated my concern, but I received to help at all. Three years ago after much research and misdiagnosis, I found the diagnosis myself...Aspergers Syndrome. Isabel is doing well academically, but socially she is struggling, an outcast as all the kids want to hang out with the "cool" kids; Aspergers kids are not cool. They are quirky, they are different, they are clumsy, they do not match their clothes, their hygiene is not up to par, they are socially awkward. All these things being said, my daughter ......is a gem among gems, she is interesting, soooo funny! curious, has a great sense of humor, loves to laugh, has taught me many life lessons, but the suffering I see related to her being socially isolated from her peers is difficult to watch time and time again. Had she been diagnosed earlier many of these "quirks" could have dissolved into mere shadows of what they are today. You see, Aspergers kids love to mimic, they all want to belong and will watch what others do in order to be socially acceptable. As time went on without a diagnosis Isabel grew a reputation and a reputation is hard to diminish in high school. Had she had the proper diagnosis we could have worked with her on those so-important-in-high-school-so-important-in-life-social skills. Having friends in high school IS important, more important than being on the honor roll. It is important to belong. It is a travesty when a child, any child feels..perceives, that they do not belong. It is an isolating feeling, a feeling that you are not good enough, that no-one wants to be your friend and an aspergers kid doesn't know why, they just know that they are alone alot. NO child should have overwhelming feelings like that that are constantly with them. This should not be the norm. Hurrah for the Rapid ABC! Sheryl Ubl Isabel Ubl-Correa