Girls diagnosed with autism 1.5 years later than boys, on average

Researchers have identified key tends in the diagnosis and presentation of autism spectrum disorder. Of note, girls are diagnosed with autism an average of 1.5 years later than boys, they wrote in Autism Research.

“The major treatment that has some efficacy in autism is early diagnosis and getting the children into intensive services, including behavioral therapy,” Eric M. Morrow, MD, PhD, associate professor of molecular biology, neuroscience and psychiatry at Brown University in Rhode Island, said in a press release. “If we’re identifying girls later, that may delay their treatments.”

To identify trends among those with autism, the researchers developed the Rhode Island Consortium for Autism Research and Treatment (RI-CART) — a public-private-academic collaboration that involves all major points of service for families affected by ASD in the state. They based diagnosis on direct behavioral observation according to the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition, and included the first 1,000 participants in RI-CART, whose ages ranged from 21 months to 64 years. They estimated that the overall cohort represents between 20% and 49% of pediatric age individuals in Rhode Island with ASD, with demographics representative of the United States Census.

The researchers reported a high rate of co-occurring psychiatric and medical conditions among those affected. Approximately 50% of participants reported another neurodevelopmental disorder, such as ADHD or intellectual disability; 44.1% reported a psychiatric disorder; 42.7% reported a neurological condition, such as seizures/epilepsy, migraines, or tics; 92.5% reported at least one general medical condition and approximately 33% reported other behavioral problems.

“Many people with autism need support for the psychiatric and emotional challenges that are prevalent in people who share this one diagnosis,” Stephen Sheinkopf, PhD, associate professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at Brown University, said in the release. “These are clinically complicated individuals who deserve strong, sophisticated, multidimensional, multidisciplinary care.”

The researchers determined that the later average diagnoses among girls was “among the most prominent findings of immediate clinical importance” and attributed its potential cause to more advanced language abilities in females with ASD.

“We need to think about how we can improve recognition of autism in individuals — including many of these girls — who don’t have the same level of primary language delay but may have other difficulties in social communication, social play and adapting to the social world,” Sheinkopf said. “As we improve diagnosis for the full range of individuals in the early years, we must also rethink early interventions to make sure they’re designed appropriately for children who might need assistance on more nuanced elements of social adaptation. We need to refine treatments so they cater to individual needs.” – by Joe Gramigna

Disclosures: Healio Psychiatry was unable to confirm relevant financial disclosures at time of publication.