The Changing Epidemiology of Autism.

This article reviews epidemiological studies of autism and related disorders. Study designs and sample characteristics are summarized. Currently, conservative prevalence estimates are: 13/10000 for autistic disorder, 21/10000 for pervasive developmental disorders not otherwise specified, 2.6/10000 for Asperger disorder, and 2/100000 for childhood disintegrative disorder. Newer surveys suggest that the best estimate for the prevalence of all autistic spectrum disorders is close to 0.6%. A detailed analysis of time trends in rates of pervasive developmental disorders in then provided. It is concluded that most of the increase is accounted for by changes in diagnostic concepts and criteria, and by improved identification. Whether or not there is, in addition to these factors, a true increase in the incidence of the disorder cannot be examined from available data.

[1]  J. Powell,et al.  Changes in the incidence of childhood autism and other autistic spectrum disorders in preschool children from two areas of the West Midlands, UK , 2000, Developmental medicine and child neurology.

[2]  S. Shirataki,et al.  Epidemiological and clinical study of autistic children in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. , 1992, The Kobe journal of medical sciences.

[3]  C. Gillberg,et al.  Autism in 3-6-Year-Old Children in a Suburb of Goteborg, Sweden , 1997 .

[4]  Y. Ohashi,et al.  Cumulative Incidence and Prevalence of Childhood Autism in Children in Japan , 1996, British Journal of Psychiatry.

[5]  T. Matsuishi,et al.  High Prevalence of Infantile Autism in Kurume City, Japan , 1987, Journal of child neurology.

[6]  W. Fisher,et al.  A prevalence study of pervasive developmental disorders in North Dakota. , 1987, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[7]  C. Gillberg,et al.  Is Autism More Common Now than Ten Years Ago? , 1991, British Journal of Psychiatry.

[8]  E. Fombonne.  Prevalence of Childhood Disintegrative Disorder , 2002 .

[9]  B. Brask.  A prevalence investigation of childhood psychosis , 1972 .

[10]  K Reesten M Eldgaard,et al.  A Population-Based Study of Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccination and Autism , 2002 .

[11]  E. Fombonne.  Epidemiological Surveys of Autism and Other Pervasive Developmental Disorders: An Update , 2003, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[12]  P Sturmey,et al.  Administrative prevalence of autism in the Texas school system. , 2001, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[13]  Y. Hoshino,et al.  The Epidemiological Study of Autism in Fukushima‐ken , 1982, Folia psychiatrica et neurologica japonica.

[14]  B Hagberg,et al.  Brief Report: Autism and Asperger Syndrome in Seven-Year-Old Children: A Total Population Study , 1999, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[15]  G. Baird,et al.  A screening instrument for autism at 18 months of age: a 6-year follow-up study. , 2000, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[16]  N. Mamelle,et al.  An epidemiological study of infantile autism in a French department (Rhône): a research note. , 1989, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines.

[17]  E. Fombonne.  Is there an epidemic of autism? , 2001, Pediatrics.

[18]  Lorna Wing,et al.  The definition and prevalence of autism: A review , 2005, European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

[19]  C. Gillberg,et al.  The epidemiology of Asperger syndrome. A total population study. , 1993, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines.

[20]  S. Selvin,et al.  The Changing Prevalence of Autism in California , 2002, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[21]  C. Gillberg,et al.  Autism and Autistic-like Conditions in Swedish Rural and Urban Areas: a Population Study , 1986, British Journal of Psychiatry.

[22]  W. Fraser,et al.  The changing prevalence of autistic disorder in a Welsh health district , 1997, Developmental medicine and child neurology.

[23]  L. Kanner.  Autistic disturbances of affective contact. , 1968, Acta paedopsychiatrica.

[24]  I M Smith,et al.  First report of a Canadian epidemiological study of autistic syndromes. , 1988, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines.

[25]  A. Sandler,et al.  A screening instrument for autism at 18 months of age: A 6-year follow-up study , 2001 .

[26]  E. Fombonne,et al.  Epidemiologic data on Asperger disorder. , 2003, Child and adolescent psychiatric clinics of North America.

[27]  L. Wing,et al.  The prevalence of early childhood autism: comparison of administrative and epidemiological studies , 1976, Psychological Medicine.

[28]  C. Gillberg,et al.  Infantile Autism in Children of Immigrant Parents , 1987, British Journal of Psychiatry.

[29]  E. Fombonne.  The prevalence of autism. , 2003, JAMA.

[30]  C. Gillberg,et al.  Autism in immigrants: children born in Sweden to mothers born in Uganda. , 1995, Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR.

[31]  I. Moilanen,et al.  Autism in Northern Finland , 2000, European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

[32]  Mogens Vestergaard,et al.  A population-based study of measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination and autism. , 2002, The New England journal of medicine.

[33]  L. Smeeth,et al.  Rate of first recorded diagnosis of autism and other pervasive developmental disorders in United Kingdom general practice, 1988 to 2001 , 2004, BMC medicine.

[34]  S. Baron-Cohen,et al.  Does Autism Cluster Geographically? A Research Note , 1999 .

[35]  E. Schopler,et al.  Do autistic children come from upper-middle-class parents? , 1979, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[36]  P. Bolton,et al.  Brief Report Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Conditions in Children Aged 5-11 Years in Cambridgeshire, UK , 2002, Autism : the international journal of research and practice.

[37]  M. Fitzgerald,et al.  Prevalence of childhood autism in Ireland. , 1984, Irish medical journal.

[38]  H. Steinhausen,et al.  A community survey of infantile autism. , 1986, Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry.

[39]  J. Miles,et al.  Prevalence of autism in Missouri: changing trends and the effect of a comprehensive state autism project. , 2000, Missouri medicine.

[40]  D. Altmann.  Autism and measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine , 2000, The Lancet.

[41]  C. Rice,et al.  Prevalence of autism in a US metropolitan area. , 2003, JAMA.

[42]  E. Fombonne,et al.  The epidemiology of autism: a review , 1999, Psychological Medicine.

[43]  E. Fombonne,et al.  Prevalence of pervasive developmental disorders in the British nationwide survey of child mental health. , 2001, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[44]  E. Fombonne,et al.  Prevalence of infantile autism in four French regions , 1992, Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology.

[45]  R. S. Eagle.  Commentary: Further Commentary on the Debate Regarding Increase in Autism in California , 2004, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[46]  E. Saemundsen,et al.  Prevalence of Autism in Iceland , 2001, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[47]  E. Fombonne,et al.  Autism and associated medical disorders in a French epidemiological survey. , 1997, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[48]  A. Sandler,et al.  Pervasive developmental disorders in preschool children , 2002 .

[49]  M. Rutter.  Autistic children: infancy to adulthood. , 1970, Seminars in psychiatry.

[50]  W. McMahon,et al.  The UCLA-University of Utah epidemiologic survey of autism: prevalence. , 1989, The American journal of psychiatry.

[51]  H. Jick,et al.  Epidemiology and Possible Causes of Autism , 2003, Pharmacotherapy.

[52]  E. Tirosh,et al.  Autism in the Haifa area--an epidemiological perspective. , 2001, The Israel Medical Association journal : IMAJ.

[53]  Toshiro Sugiyama,et al.  The prevalence of autism in Nagoya, Japan: A total population study , 1989, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[54]  P. Decouflé,et al.  Prevalence of autism in a United States population: the Brick Township, New Jersey, investigation. , 2001, Pediatrics.

[55]  Yoko Tanoue,et al.  Epidemiology of infantile autism in southern Ibaraki, Japan: Differences in prevalence in birth cohorts , 1988, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[56]  E. Fombonne,et al.  Pervasive developmental disorders in preschool children. , 2001, JAMA.

[57]  E. Sponheim,et al.  Autism and Related Disorders: Epidemiological Findings in a Norwegian Study Using ICD-10 Diagnostic Criteria , 1998, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[58]  L. Wing,et al.  Severe impairments of social interaction and associated abnormalities in children: Epidemiology and classification , 1979, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[59]  B. Leventhal,et al.  The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule—Generic: A Standard Measure of Social and Communication Deficits Associated with the Spectrum of Autism , 2000, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[60]  W. Fraser,et al.  Prevalence of autistic spectrum disorder in children attending mainstream schools in a Welsh education authority. , 2003, Developmental medicine and child neurology.

[61]  C. Gillberg.  Infantile autism and other childhood psychoses in a Swedish urban region. Epidemiological aspects. , 1984, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines.

[62]  Victor Lotter,et al.  Epidemiology of autistic conditions in young children , 1966, Social psychiatry.

[63]  S. Selvin,et al.  Descriptive Epidemiology of Autism in a California Population: Who Is at Risk? , 2002, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[64]  D. Treffert.  Epidemiology of infantile autism. , 1970, Archives of general psychiatry.

[65]  L. Wing.  Childhood Autism and Social Class: A Question of Selection? , 1980, British Journal of Psychiatry.

[66]  A. Couteur,et al.  Autism diagnostic interview: A standardized investigator-based instrument , 1989, Journal of autism and developmental disorders.

[67]  Eric Fombonne,et al.  Pervasive developmental disorders in preschool children: confirmation of high prevalence. , 2005, The American journal of psychiatry.

[68]  K. Ness,et al.  Analysis of prevalence trends of autism spectrum disorder in Minnesota. , 2003, Archives of pediatrics & adolescent medicine.