Early Screening Is Important.

I read an article in my Medscape feed a couple of weeks ago about the success found in screening in early intervention settings of children leading to a higher incidence of early detection of autism for children when compared to standard care. The study published in JAMA Pediatrics in January 2022, noted the benefit of a “multistage screening protocol” seems to support the effectiveness of the approach. I hope it will lead to an early diagnosis for many more children in the future given that early intervention can be most beneficial for these children.

It reminded me how important screening is to getting children on the autism spectrum the support they need as early as possible. Oh how I wish we could have gotten information and support for our son sooner but better later than never. So, if you or someone you know has a child he or she is concerned about, then please talk to your pediatrician about specifically screening for autism as well as any concerns for developmental delays. I wish I knew more when my son was younger but I am happy to see more information becoming accessible for parents and caregivers on this topic today. I can only hope more information can be obtained through continued research about how best to identify and care for this population of individuals in our community.

If someone tells you “everything is fine”, then follow you gut and ask again if that is what you need to do. It is okay to ask for a second opinion or even a second screening a couple of months later. You are not being pushy; you are just looking out for your child. It is okay.

Please keep in mind that there is not one test or tool for diagnosing autism and diagnosing autism spectrum disorder is not a simple process. Questionnaires used in the process of screening can be quite long. So, if I may offer some advice. Keep your list of developmental milestones in a safe place digitally or even printed out with other medical records for your child. It will come in handy when you fill out forms about things like age of first words, age when the child was able to stack objects, age of rolling over etc. You would think one might remember but 3 years later I found myself looking through baby albums and pictures piecing it all together. Learned my lesson the hard way.

As always, I hope this helps someone. Best Wishes.