2023-09-05 16:50:15
The results of 3 studies issued (Tuesday) revealed the existence of a new tool with a high degree of accuracy, which helps in diagnosing autism in children at an early age.
The three clinical studies, involving more than 1,500 children, tested a number of measures that can help diagnose children with autism before the age of three.
According to what was confirmed by the researchers from the Marcus Autism Center of the Children’s Healthcare Organization in Atlanta, USA, the results of the three studies, published together today, in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and the journal “Jama Network Open” showed that measurements of children’s apparent behaviors can It helps diagnose autism in children between the ages of 16 and 30 months.
Through these measurements, the researchers were able to provide a comprehensive diagnostic index, in addition to individual measurements of the levels of social disability, verbal ability, and non-verbal learning skills for each child. This index can also help clinicians diagnose autism early while providing objective measures of each child’s strengths and weaknesses, to begin caregiving for the child and family.
Principal researcher Dr. Warren Jones, director of research at the Marcus Center for Autism at Emory University College of Medicine, said in a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat: “These results are the culmination of more than 20 years of research, which led to the development of a diagnostic tool for autism, It is now available for use in the United States, following approval by the US Food and Drug Administration.
According to the World Health Organization, 1 out of every 100 children worldwide suffers from autism, also referred to as autism spectrum disorders, which is a group of diverse impairments associated with brain development and appears in children in the form of difficulties in social interaction, communication processes, attention to details and responses. unusual verb.
In addition to having a positive impact on improving the quality of life of people with the disorder and their caregivers, data-supported psychosocial interventions can improve communication skills and social behaviour. Early diagnosis is also important in supporting the long-term health, learning and well-being of all children with autism.
For more than two decades, Dr. Jones and co-author Amy Klein, director of the Marcus Autism Center at Children’s Health Care in Atlanta, have studied how children view and learn from their social environment, and how this differs in children with autism.
Previous research results showed that these differences appear early in childhood and are directly related to individual genetic differences.
In their current work, Jones and Klein developed a new technique to reliably measure these differences as a biomarker that clinicians might use.
“The long-term implications of these findings may mean that children who currently have limited access to health care wait two years or more before being diagnosed at an early age,” said Dr. Klein, chair of the division of autism and developmental disabilities at Emory University School of Medicine. Four or five, but now they can be diagnosed early. He added, “According to modern technology, a child can be diagnosed at an age between 16 and 30 months.”
One out of every 100 children worldwide suffers from autism (Public Domain)
“In addition, this technology measures each child’s individual levels of social disability, verbal ability, and non-verbal learning ability, which is important information for clinicians when developing personalized treatment plans to help each child achieve the greatest gains.”
“We hope that these results will ease the current burdens on the health care system and reduce long waiting lists for evaluation,” Jones comments, explaining that “when we can reduce the time to diagnoses and start medical support, we can help positively impact the lives of many children.” And families.”
He added, “If parents have concerns regarding their child’s development, they should talk to their pediatrician or primary care physician,” stressing that “parents can learn regarding important milestones in a child’s development and early signs of developmental delay, through the many evidences now available in the dark of his speech.” “We are now conducting studies on the effectiveness of this tool in general population screening, and testing whether early signs of autism can be identified using the new tool at just 9 months of age,” Jones said.
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