There is an urgent requirement for the improvement of early detection of ASDs. This article provides a brief review of research on the accuracy of screeners for children with ASD that have been administered to general pediatric samples and then present results of a population-based study with a broadband screener to detect children with communication delays including children with ASD.
Baird, G. , Charman, T. , Baron-Cohen, S. , Cox, A. , Swettenham, J. , Wheelwright, S. , ET AL . (2000) `A Screening Instrument for Autism at 18 Months of Age: A 6-Year Follow-Up Study' , Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry39: 694-702.
2.
Baron-Cohen, S. , Allen, J. & Gillberg, C. (1992) `Can Autism Be Detected at 18 Months? The Needle, the Haystack, and the CHAT' , British Journal of Psychiatry161: 839-43.
3.
Baron-Cohen, S. , Cox, A. , Baird, G. , Swettenham, J. , Nightingale, N. , Morgan, K. , ET AL. (1996) `Psychological Markers in the Detection of Autism in Infancy in a Large Population' , British Journal of Psychiatry168: 158-63.
4.
Centers For Disease Control And Prevention ( 2007) `Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders: Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, Six Sites, Unites States, 2000-2002' , Surveillance Summaries, 9 February, MMWR 2007, 56 (SS-1): 1-40.
5.
Chawarska, K. & Volkmar, F. (2005) `Autism in Infancy and Early Childhood', in F. Volkmar , R. Paul , A. Klin & D. Cohen (eds) Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders, 3rd edn, pp. 223-46. New York: Wiley.
6.
Chawarska, K. , Paul, R. , Klin, A. , Hannigen, S. , Dichtel, L. & Volkmar, F. (in press) `Parental Recognition of Developmental Problems in Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorders' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
7.
Clark, A. & Harrington, R. (1999) `On Diagnosing Rare Disorders Rarely: Appropriate Use of Screening Instruments' , Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry40: 287-90.
8.
Cox, A. , Klein, K. , Charman, T. , Baird, G. , Baron-Cohen, S. , Swettenham, J. , ET AL (19 99) `Autism Spectrum Disorders at 20 and 42 Months of Age: Stability of Clinical and ADI-R Diagnosis' , Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines40: 719-32.
9.
Dietz, C. , Swinkels, S. , Daalen, E. , Engeland, H. & Buitelaar, J. (2006) `Screening for Autistic Spectrum Disorders in Children Aged 14-15 Months. II: Population Screening with the Early Screening of Autistic Traits Questionnaire (ESAT). Design and General Findings' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders36: 713-22.
10.
Filipek, P. , Accardo, P. , Baranek, G. , Cook, E. , Dawson, G. , Gordon, P. , ET AL. (1999) `The Screening and Diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorders' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders29: 439-84.
11.
Glascoe, F.P. (1999) `The Value of Parents' Concerns to Detect and Address Developmental and Behavioural Problems' , Journal of Paediatric Child Health35: 1-8.
12.
Johnson, C.P. & Myers, S.M. (2007) `Identification and Evaluation of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders' , Pediatrics120: 1183-215.
13.
Kleinman, J. , Robins, D. , Ventola, P. , Pandey, J. , Boorstein, H. , Esser, E. , Wilson, L. , Rosenthal, M. , Sutera, S. , Verbalis, A. , Barton, M. , Hodgson, S. , Green, J. , Dumont-Mathieu, T. , Volkmar, F. , Chawarska, K. , Klin, A. & Fein, D. (in press) `The Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers: A Follow-Up Study Investigating the Early Detection of Autism Spectrum Disorders' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
14.
Landa, R.J. , Holman, K.C. & Garrett-Mayer, E. (2007) `Social and Communication Development in Toddlers with Early and Later Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders' , Archives of General Psychiatry64: 853-64.
15.
Le Couteur, A. , Lord, C. & Rutter, M. (2003) Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R). Los Angeles: Western Psychological Services .
16.
Lord, C. (1995) `Follow-Up of Two Year-Olds Referred for Possible Autism' , Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines36: 1365-82.
17.
Lord, C. , Rutter, M. , Dilavore, P. & Risi, S. (1999) Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Generic . Los Angeles: Western Psychological Services.
18.
Mandell, D.S. , Novak, M. & Zubritsky, C. (2005) `Factors Associated with Age of Diagnosis among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders' , Pediatrics116: 1480-6.
19.
Meisels, S.J. (1989) `Can Developmental Screening Tests Identify Children Who Are Developmentally At Risk?' , Pediatrics83: 578-85.
20.
Mullen, E. (1995) The Mullen Scales of Early Learning. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance.
21.
National Research Council (2001) Educating Children with Autism. Committee on Educational Interventions for Children with Autism. Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education . Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
22.
Robins, D.L. & Dumont-Mathieu, T.M. (2006) `Early Screening for Autism Spectrum Disorders: Update on the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers and Other Measures' , Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics27: S111-S119.
23.
Robins, D.L. , Fein, D. , Barton, M. & Green, J.A. (2001) `The Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers: An Initial Study Investigating the Early Detection of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders31: 131-51.
24.
Rutter, M. , Bailey, A. , Berument, S. , Lord, C. & Pickles, A. (2001) Social Communication Questionnaire Research Edition. Los Angeles: Western Psychological Corporation.
25.
Sparrow, S.S. , Balla, D.A. & Cicchetti, D.V. (1984) Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
26.
Squires, J. , Potter, L. & Bricker, D. (1999) The ASQ User's Guide for the Ages & Stages Questionnaires: A Parent-Completed, Child-Monitoring System, 2nd edn. Baltimore: Brookes.
27.
Stone, W. , Mcmahon, C. , Yoder, P.J. & Walden, T. (2007) `Early Social-Communicative and Cognitive Development of Younger Siblings of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders' , Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine161: 384-90.
28.
Szklo, M. & Nieto, F. (2007) Epidemiology: Beyond the Basics.. Boston: Jones and Bartlett..
29.
US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (2005) Twenty-Seventh Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Washington, DC: US Department of Education.
30.
Wetherby, A. & Prizant, B. (2002) Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile-First Normed Edition. Baltimore: Brookes.
31.
Wetherby, A. & Woods, J. (2004) SORF: Systematic Observation of Red Flags for Autism Spectrum Disorders in Young Children. Unpublished manual, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL.
32.
Wetherby, A. , Allen, L. , Cleary, J. , Kublin, K. & Goldstein, H. (2002) `Validity and Reliability of the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile with Very Young Children' , Journal of Speech, Language, & Hearing Research45: 1202-19.
33.
Wetherby, A. , Goldstein, H. , Cleary, J. , Allen, L. & Kublin, K. (2003) `Early Identification of Children with Communication Disorders: Concurrent and Predictive Validity of the CSBS Developmental Profile' , Infants and Young Children16 (2): 161-74.
34.
Wetherby, A. , Woods, J. , Allen, L. , Cleary, J. , Dickinson, H. & Lord, C. (2004) `Early Indicators of Autism Spectrum Disorders in the 2nd Year of Life' , Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders34: 473-93.
35.
Wetherby, A. , Watt, N. , Morgan, L. & Shumway, S. (2007) `Social Communication Profiles of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders in the Second Year of Life' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders37: 960-75.
36.
Wiggins, L.D. , Baio, J. & Rice, C. (2006) `Examination of the Time between First Evaluation and First Autism Spectrum Diagnosis in a Population-Based Sample' , Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics27: S79-S87.
37.
Young, R.L. , Brewer, N. & Pattison, C. (2003) `Parental Identification of Early Behavioural Abnormalities in Children with Autistic Disorder' , Autism7: 125-43.
38.
Zwaigenbaum, L. , Thurm, A. , Stone, W. , Baranek, G. , Bryson, S. , Iverson, J. , Kau, A. , Klin, A. , Lord, C. , Landa, R. , Rogers, S. & Sigman, M. (2007) `Studying the Emergence of Autism Spectrum Disorders in High-Risk Infants: Methodological and Practical Issues' , Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders37: 466-80.