New Screening Measure Detects Signs of Autism at 12 month Well Child Visit

New Screening Measure for Doctors Detects Signs of Autism at 12 Month Well Baby Visit--Good News!

There is some wonderful news for all of us parents of young children! The Journal of Pediatrics has published a new tool for screening one-year-olds for early signs of developmental delays--including symptoms and behaviors consistent with Autism. Autism is a developmental delay that impacts children's language, social functioning, play, learning, and behaviors. Since Autism varies so much in severity, clinicians refer to it as a 'spectrum disorder' (you may hear the term Autism and Autistic Spectrum Disorder used interchangeably in news stories). This is excellent news for parents and children, because early identification is crucial.

The new screening questionnaire called the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile for Infants and Toddlers (abbreviated CSBS DP IT) is specifically designed to be used by pediatricians during the 12 month well baby visit. So why is this such a big deal? Most children who have Autism and other developmental delays do not get referred for a proper diagnosis until around 5 and a half years of age. This means that most families lose two or three years that would be the very best time to get their child early intervention services. Research has shown that early intervention services (including speech language therapy, special education, applied behavior analysis and psychotherapy) are the gold standard of care in treating children with Autism. Not only is this the time when the child's brain is the most adaptable, but professionals can intervene early to prevent undesirable behaviors from taking root. Young children with Autism desperately need to learn skills that unfold naturally for most children, and there is no time to be lost in getting them the help they need.

Lets consider a fairly typical course for a child with Autism. I'll ask you to imagine the case of a child named Aiden Doe (not his real name). Aiden was an incredibly easy baby. He was beautiful and healthy. He did not cry much, but liked to be left in his crib to stare at his mobile. Since he was their first baby, his parents did not notice that he babbled and smiled less than most babies. During his doctor's visits, he was growing and gaining weight. The physician did not note anything amiss. Aiden did begin speaking at 18 months, so that was a relief. What his mom did not realize for a while was that he was not speaking like most children, but repeating things other people or TV characters said. Over time, Aiden became more and more different from his peers. He developed sensory hypersensitivities to noise and textures, and started having temper tantrums. His mother took him to the doctor, but during his visit he played happily with the otoscope and sang songs, so the physician did not get to see anything unusual. The next couple of visits he had ear infections and strep throat, so he just clung to his mother like all children do when they are sick. So again,the pediatrician could not see anything of concern.

“He's just a boy,” or “He'll grow out of it” said Aiden's relatives. Aiden's parents tried him in the best preschool they could afford. Preschool was a nightmare for Aiden. He became so stressed he withdrew to the train corner and screamed when anyone touched him. He was soon expelled for hitting other children who tried to touch 'his' trains. Mrs. Doe quit her job to stay home with Aiden. Mr. and Mrs. Doe were facing increasing behavior problems at home. Aiden began banging his head on the wall when they tried to stop him from playing with his trains or watching his favorite video. He would spend hours pacing and talking to himself. When he was upset, he rubbed the skin on his lips until it was raw. They could no longer go out to eat or to visit friends without fearing Aiden's meltdowns. “How on earth is he going to be ready for Kindergarten next year?” they began to ask. “Are we just bad parents?” they worried.

Now lets imagine that Dr. Jones gave Mrs. Doe the CSBS to complete before Aiden's 12 month visit. It would have taken Mrs. Doe about 5 minutes to complete the 24 item questionnaire. The CSBS could have picked up on early signs such as less eye contact, delayed communication skills (both language use and gestures), and unusual motor and social behaviors. All of us parents know that a well baby visit lasts about 15 minutes. This is barely enough time for the physician to conduct a physical exam, never mind learn much about the child's development (and lets face it, doctor's visits are hardly the time when your child presents his best self). Unless your child is demonstrating obvious differences during those precious 15 minutes, even a terrific physician can miss important signs of developmental delays.

In this scenario, Dr. Jones would have had data to indicate that there was something unusual about Aiden's development. Dr. Jones could then have referred the Does to a psychologist, speech language pathologist, developmental pediatrician or the public school system's Infants and Toddler's Program. Any of these professionals could have given Aiden a thorough evaluation to determine if he had a significant developmental delay. Each of those professionals would have been able to create an individualized treatment plan just for Aiden. The Does' could have accessed the services they needed to help their son. Aiden could have spent the next four years learning the skills he would need to cope with the world. His parents could have learned how to manage his behavior and soothe him.  When it was time for Kindergarten, the family would have had a team of professionals in the public school system (or private, as appropriate) who were designated to meet Aiden's needs so that he could make progress. Best of all, the Does could have escaped the misery of not knowing how to help their little one.

Since 2007, the American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended that physicians screen for Autism and other developmental delays at 18 and 24 months. With this new tool, physicians can gather information that may identify up to 75% of children with developmental delays at 12 months. It is not the standard of care anymore for a pediatrician to simply 'eye-ball' a child and ask a few questions--particularly when there are such high quality, easy to use screening tools. I encourage all of the parents who read this to ask your pediatrician to use objective screening devices. Children with disabilities need to be identified as early as possible! The CSBS can be downloaded for free from this website:
http://www.brookespublishing.com/store/books/wetherby-csbsdp/checklist.htm. If your doctor does not already use it, you can bring it in yourself.