Taking five minutes to ask parents a series of screening questions about developmental delays can help doctors figure out if a baby as young as one year of age might have autism or related conditions, according to a new study published in the Journal of Pediatrics. Here’s the WSJ story . The research found that after further evaluation, about 32 out of 10,000 babies screened were diagnosed with autism-spectrum disorders and another 101 with another type of language or developmental delay. The University of California, San Diego researchers who conducted the study say that the benefits of widespread screening — namely getting kids into early treatment — outweigh the downsides, which includes the worry induced by false-positive findings and the extra time required for pediatricians to handle the questionnaire. Nicole Gorton, a pediatrician at Scripps Coastal Medical Center, has found the questionnaire helpful, she tells the Health Blog. Parents fill it out in the waiting room, so it doesn’t take up office time, and it actually improves the visit because it “starts a discussion with a doctor before they come in,” she

says. If a child’s scores are borderline at 12 months, she again gives parents the questionnaire when their child is 15 and 18 months old. The amount of time it takes to score and discuss the questions is minimal if everything looks fine, says Gorton. “If they flunk the form, it generates a lot more time [in the office], but it’s a discussion that needs to happen,” she says. The questionnaire has been well received by her patients, according to Gorton, who has yet to have a parent refuse to fill it in. Even when she tells the parents that the child may need a further evaluation, she is cautious about alarming them and tells them it’s just “one snapshot of the child.” The screening includes questions for parents about how many sounds their child can make, whether they can tell if their infant was happy or upset or if the child engages with them by, say, looking where the parent is pointing or by bringing toys to the parents.

Originally posted here:
Autism Questionnaire Improves Well-Baby Visits, Says Pediatrician