What is it about?
The objective of this study is to examine the need for a radical change in autism research strategy. At first glance, autism prevalence appears to have increased from 0.62 percent in 2012 to 1.85% in 2020. However, during this same 8-year period there has been no reported increase in prevalence for any of the other disorders listed in the DSM-5. This threefold increase in autism diagnoses coincides with the 2013 creation of the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) umbrella category under which are now included a range of confusingly dissimilar conditions. It thus appears that two-thirds of those who have been diagnosed with ASD may not be autistic. If so, then recent research into the genetic causes and risks for autism is questionable. There is no way of knowing if the correlations researchers are finding are to autism or to other conditions.
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Why is it important?
This article is important because it alerts researchers to the fact that most of those who have been given an autism spectrum diagnosis are not in fact autistic
Perspectives
The American Psychiatric Association has been remiss in broadening its definition of autism to include other conditions that are unrelated to it.
David Rowland
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: New Direction for Autism Research: A Review, October 2021, Sciencedomain International,
DOI: 10.9734/bpi/rdmmr/v5/14006d.
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