EBD Blog

Writing in the July 2006 issue of The Lancet, Professor Gillian Baird and colleagues reported the results of a population-cohort study of the prevalence of Autism in the United Kingdom. The found 38.9 cases per 10,000 and 77.2 per 10,000 for childhood autism and autism spectrum disorders, respectively, for a total of 1.16%.

Prevalence of autism and related ASDs is substantially greater than previously recognised. Whether the increase is due to better ascertainment, broadening diagnostic criteria, or increased incidence is unclear. Services in health, education, and social care will need to recognise the needs of children with some form of ASD, who constitute 1% of the child population.

in 2005, Craig Newschaffer and colleagues examined birth cohort curves based on US special education data and found that the prevalence of autism was increasing over time, with higher prevalence among younger cohorts of children. (They also report data about prevalence of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury.)

Link to the abstract of the article by Professor Baird and colleagues. Link to the earlier EBD Blog entry on Professsor Shattuck’s study. Link to Professor Newschaffer’s article in Pediatrics.