Media outlets like CNN, USA Today, and ABC News are all abuzz about the recent press release from the Center of Disease Control advising the public that a recent CDC study concluded that the rate of autism spectrum disorder among children has risen from 1 in 88 to 1 in 68. According to the CDC:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 1 in 68 children (or 14.7 per 1,000 eight-year-olds) in multiple communities in the United States has been identified with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).  This new estimate is roughly 30 percent higher than previous estimates reported in 2012 of 1 in 88 children (11.3 per 1,000 eight year olds) being identified with an autism spectrum disorder.

The number of children identified with ASD ranged from 1 in 175 children in Alabama to 1 in 45 children in New Jersey…the data continue to show that ASD is almost five times more common among boys than girls:  1 in 42 boys versus 1 in 189 girls. White children are more likely to be identified as having ASD than are black or Hispanic children.

What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?

Since this is this website’s first article about ASD, I think it is appropriate to give a brief introduction before I provide some commentary on the study, its “catch,” and the social/political context.

ASD is not a learning disability, although those who are diagnosed with it may also express degrees of certain learning disabilities. It is classified as a developmental disability or mental/psychiatric disorder, the causes of which are mostly unknown. To give a very basic definition, according to the CDC:

[su_quote]Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges. There is often nothing about how people with ASD look that sets them apart from other people, but people with ASD may communicate, interact, behave, and learn in ways that are different from most other people. The learning, thinking, and problem-solving abilities of people with ASD can range from gifted to severely challenged. Some people with ASD need a lot of help in their daily lives; others need less.[/su_quote]

If you are unfamiliar with ASD that probably sounds like a vague definition. To learn more, visit the CDC’s extensive guide to ASD. You can also download their ASD quick-fact sheet, which provides an overview of some of the signs, quoted here:

Children or adults with ASD might:

• • Not point at objects to show interest  (for example, not point at an airplane flying over)
  • Not look at objects when another person points at them
  • Have trouble relating to others or not have an interest in other people at all
  • Avoid eye contact and want to be alone
  • Have trouble understanding other people’s feelings or talking about their own feelings
  • Prefer not to be held or cuddled, or might cuddle only when they want to
  • Appear to be unaware when people talk to them, but respond to other sounds
  • Be very interested in people, but not know how to talk, play, or relate to them
  • Repeat or echo words or phrases said to them, or repeat words or phrases in place of normal language
  • Have trouble expressing their needs using typical words or motions
  • Not play “pretend” games (for example, not pretend to “feed” a doll)
  • Repeat actions over and over again
  • Have trouble adapting when a routine changes
  • Have unusual reactions to the way things smell, taste, look, feel, or sound
  • Lose skills they once had (for example, stop saying words they were using)

You can also view the introductory video by the National Center for Learning Disabilities below:

• The study, the social/political context, and the “catch”
• Awareness of this mental disorder follows closely on the heels of widespread public awareness of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which also distinctively affects boys. With ADHD there were (and still are) numerous concerns about rampant misdiagnoses. In his book Boys and Girls Learn Differently Dr. Michael Gurian estimated that roughly 90% of ADHD cases are misdiagnoses and result from a misunderstanding or lack of acceptance of natural boy behavior [1].
• Concern over misdiagnoses of ADHD increased when the CDC released a report last year which claimed that 1 in 5 boys and 1 in 10 students overall now had the disorder (this report was actually an excerpt from a broader study). As the rate of autism increases (and I predict it will spike again), it is highly probable that there will be increasing concerns about misdiagnoses, just as there are/were with ADHD.
• Autism is markedly different from ADHD, however. While high energy (“hyperactivity”) and restlessness highly correlate to normal boy behavior, children with autism demonstrate a combination of behaviors that is generally atypical for both boys and girls. In addition, the CDC claims that the methods used to collect and analyze ASD data have not changed. Here’s a passage from the CDC press release that is interesting in more ways than one:
• The surveillance summary report, “Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder among Children Aged 8 Years – Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 11 Sites, United States, 2010,” was published today in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.  Researchers reviewed records from community sources that educate, diagnose, treat and/or provide services to children with developmental disabilities. The criteria used to diagnose ASDs and the methods used to collect data have not changed.
• Notes:
• [1] Dr. Michael Gurian. Boys and Girls Learn Differently, p. 274-75.