by KYW's Kim Glovas
A new study has been published in the journal Pediatrics showing that the number of children exhibiting autism disorders is higher than previously believed.
The study surveyed 78,000 parents across the US and found some alarming results. Peter Bell is with Autism Speaks, an organization committed to the research, prevention, and treatment of autism:
"One in every 91 children in the United States has an autism spectrum disorder, and this is significantly higher than previous estimates, which we had been using of one in every 150 children. And because autism happens four times more often in boys, the rate for autism prevalence in boys was one in every 58."
Bell says that because of the alarming increase, conventional wisdom -- which believes that autism is a genetic disorder -- is being questioned.
He says some studies are underway right now to determine if any environmental factors may be driving the numbers up.
Bell says parents should look for the potential signs of autism in their young children:
"They might not develop language the way their peers do, or they might not develop it at all. Eye contact -- if the child is not looking at you appropriately, in the eye, of just avoiding any facial interaction, that's another sign. And another one that we find is that children don't respond to their name when they are called."
While conventional medical wisdom links autism to genetics, Bell says there are some studies underway examining environmental factors. He says that might explain the explosive growth in the number of cases.
(Graphic: NIH)
E-Mail Story
Print Story
