by Jonathan Slack, Market Research & Development Specialist, AHSS
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the prevalence rate of autism in children has increased rapidly over the past fifteen years from 1 in 150 children in 2000 to 1 in 68 children today. The CDC will once again be collecting data on the prevalence rate in 2016, but this time they will assess records of 4-year-old children.
This change was long overdue. With individuals on the autism spectrum being diagnosed earlier and earlier, this change will enable the CDC’s data to be more accurate.
For example:
- 2010’s prevalence rate of 1 in 68 came from studying 8 year old children, meaning there was an eight year lag time between their birth and the time of calculating the incidence rate.
- This meant that the actual prevalence rate in 2010 was much higher than was being reported.
- Now that the CDC will be incorporating younger children in their data set, the prevalence rate will be more accurate – thus adding more credibility to the CDC’s tabulations.
- This increased credibility will further fuel and drive autism awareness around the country
To read more about the changes the CDC will be implementing, please read this article.
Source: disabilityscoop.com
