Clinical features associated with autism spectrum disorder diagnosed before 30 months of age: evidence from tertiary care hospitals in Thailand

Information from the abstract

Objectives The prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been steadily increasing, partly due to improved awareness and diagnosis. However, when parents should bring their children in to be screened has not yet been clearly communicated.Methods We assessed the association of the clinical characteristics of children aged 1–4 years with the early diagnosis of ASD. This is a retrospective study of children in Phayao, Thailand. Participants were classified as early or late ASD diagnosed based on their age when assessed: < or ≥30 months old.Results The results showed that the 160 children with ASD enrolled in this study had a median age at first ASD diagnosis of 30 months. Eighty-one children were diagnosed early with ASD. Early diagnosed ASD was independently associated with the reason for taking the child to hospital being to undergo developmental screening, having >4 family members, delayed speech, language regression, and restricted interests.Conclusions Some features such as developmental regression are more easily observable than restricted repetitive behaviors that require an assessment of their frequency and intensity. Our findings show that the children with delayed speech had a higher chance of early ASD diagnosis than those with hyperactivity symptoms.

Why this record is monitored

This record has an Impact Signal of 77/100 based on recency, source, collaboration, and bibliographic signals. It prioritizes monitoring and is not a judgment of research quality.

Related topics: Autism Spectrum Disorder Research · Family and Disability Support Research · Child Nutrition and Feeding Issues