CDC: Rise in Autism Prevalence

The number of autism cases in the United States appeared to jump dramatically in 2014 according to new estimates released Friday, but researchers said that changes in the format of the questionnaire likely affected the numbers.
The report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Center for Health Statistics shows that the prevalence of autism in children ages 3 to 17 went up nearly 80 percent from 2011-2013 to 2014. Instead of 1 in 68 children having autism – a number that has alarmed public health officials in recent years and strained state and school system resources — researchers now estimate that the prevalence is now 1 in 45.

Editorial: Troubling Statistics in NJ as Autism Awareness Month Begins

As Autism Awareness Month begins today, new information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention definitively show the issue merits much more attention. The rate has more than doubled since a 2002 CDC survey.

As Kathleen O’Brien reported last week in The Star-Ledger, one in 68 children is
now diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder nationally — with boys nearly five times more likely than girls to have autism.

In New Jersey, it’s estimated that one in 48 children — and one in 28 boys — has autism.

CDC: 1 in 68 Children in U.S. Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder

One in 68 children in the United States have now been identified with an autism spectrum disorder, according to new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers released Thursday.

The latest estimate is roughly 30 percent higher than the CDC's previous measure, released in 2012, which found that 1 in 88 children had autism, based on health and education records.

Opinion: Autism Epidemic Paralyzes Doctors

From Anne Dachel is Media Editor for Age of Autism.

Doctors still don’t know how to diagnose autism.
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have a very difficult role to play when it comes to what they do about the autism epidemic.  Both organizations have to appear concerned (since something affecting more than one percent of U.S. children is a little hard to ignore), yet not alarmed over autism.  In addition, they have to be making some efforts to find answers at the same time they’re clearly paralyzed by the ramifications of this growing health care nightmare.