According to USA Today, autism rates increased by nearly 30 percent between 2008 and 2010, and have more than doubled since the turn of the century. 
The news comes from a study done by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is now believed that autism affects one out of every 68 eight-year-old children, up from 88 children just two years ago.
“We don’t know the extent those factors explain in terms of the increase, but we clearly know they do play a role,” Coleen Boyle, director of the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the CDC told USA Today. “Our system tells us what’s going on. It (only) gives us clues as to the why.”
The study also showed that African American autism rates were lower than that of white and Hispanic races. It also showed that boys were five times more likely to be born with autism than girls.
According to USA Today, to be diagnosed with autism, a person must have deficits in three areas: communications, social skills and typical behavior.
About one-third of the children discovered in the CDC study had intellectual deficits, while the rest had normal or above-average intelligence.
For the study, the CDC reviewed medical and school records from 2010 at 11 sites across the country. Some states, due to identification differences, had higher rates than others did. For example, Alabama had a one in 175 rate for autism, while New Jersey had a one in 46 rate.
Nevertheless, this also does not entirely explain the dramatic increase among the autism rate. According to USA Today, the CDC has used the same method to determine autism prevalence every two years since 2000, showing a 120 percent increase in autism rates between 2000 and 2010.
This news seems to defy previous expectations, as there was a thought that autism diagnoses would decrease due to criteria changes with the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, known as the DSM-5. To learn more about those changes, you can read our previous blog post about the subject.
Are There Legal Options If My Child Is Autistic?
We are currently investigating cases of fraternal twins diagnosed with autism, whose mothers were treated with the drug terbutaline. This drug is commonly used to help stop pre-term labor, but it may negatively affect an unborn baby’s brain.
If you are the parent of autistic fraternal twins, call our firm at 1 (800) 460-0606 to schedule a free consultation. Our firm can provide you with the legal advice and representation you need to pursue a potential case.
[Did You Know: The FDA has not approved terbutaline for treating anything outside of asthma.]
Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – Birth Injury Attorneys
Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/27/autism-rates-rise/6957815/
