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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]
It's [b]not hard to find dozens of articles about the overdiagnosing of autism.[/b] The whole DSM 5 rewrite of ASDs was designed to make the diagnosis harder to get. I guess we will have to await a few years to see if that is the case. But you have to do your due diligence as a parent to really understand the landscape of how children are being diagnosed these days.

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It's not hard to find salacious headlines, PP, but it's obviously hard for you to actually [b]read[/b] the articles you quoted.

[i]Asperger’s History of Overdiagnosis[/i] (which is an [b]opinion[/b] piece—not proof and not relevant since Aspergers is no longer a diagnosis)
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/opinion/aspergers-history-of-over-diagnosis.html?_r=0

"[b]A 1992 United States Department of Education directive contributed to the overdiagnosis of Asperger syndrome.[/b] It called for enhanced services for children diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum and for children with “pervasive developmental disorder — not otherwise specified (P.D.D.-N.O.S.),” a diagnosis in which children with social disabilities could be lumped. The diagnosis of Asperger syndrome went [b]through the roof[/b]. Curiously, in California, where children with P.D.D.-N.O.S. were not given enhanced services, autism-spectrum diagnoses did not increase.  (through the roof?  yeah, real scientific is that the same as a bushel and a peck?)

--Again, school designations are [b]not[/b] medical diagnoses.

[i]Study Suggests Autism is Being Overdiagnosed[/i]
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/study-suggests-autism-being-overdiagnosed-n450671
The CDC found a 30 percent spike in autism diagnoses among 8-year-olds between 2008 and 2010 to one in 68 children. It was a startling finding and one that fueled fears that something was causing more children to develop the condition.

[b]But a report published earlier this year suggested that many cases of developmental delays had simply been re-classified as autism in recent years[/b]...

--Yes, it's so hard to read the next sentence to draw an accurate conclusion.

[i]1 in 68 Children Now Has a Diagnosis of Autism-Spectrum Disorder—Why[/i]?
http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/04/1-in-68-children-now-has-a-diagnosis-of-autism-spectrum-disorder-why/360482/

The article mentions a UNC study:, "A 2007 study out of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that over 30 percent of children diagnosed as autistic at age two no longer fit the diagnosis at age four..."

The study also said, "[b]Daniels said. “ASD can be difficult to diagnosis, and if you consider only very young children, you’re likely only to find the most severely affected cases[/b].

It's this study http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/feb07/autism020807.html
and it concludes “UNC study shows state autism rates [b]in line[/b] with national average…”

The author of the article in the Atlantic writes, "The parallels between a slow-to-mature toddler and a would-be-mildly- autistic one are so striking that the prospect of a false diagnosis is great."  Then concludes, “[b]It's important to not overstate the case. The possibility that a slow-to-mature toddler will be confused as a moderately or severely autistic is slim[/b].”

"Data out of the famed Yale Study Center have demonstrated that toddlers with delayed language development are almost identical to their autistic spectrum...The science stacks up in favor of catching and treating ASD earlier because it leads to better outcomes. Dr. Laura Schreibman, who directs the Autism Intervention Research Program at the University of California, San Diego embodies the perspective of most experts when she says, “Psychologists need to advise parents that the ‘wait-and-see’ approach is not appropriate when ASD is expected. Delaying a diagnosis can mean giving up significant gains of intervention that have been demonstrated before age six.”

--So basically, PP, not every kid who is a late talker needs intervention, but it really doesn't matter if they do.  We are increasing the chances of helping kids with Communication Disorders including autism get the help they need.
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