New Study in Pediatrics Puts Autism Prevalence at 1 In 91 American Children

Among American children, 1 in 58 boys are affected by autism.

Autism Speaks, Inc.

A new study published October 5, 2009 in the American Academy of Pediatrics' journal Pediatrics found a parent-reported autism prevalence rate of one in every 91 American children, including one in 58 boys. The study used data gathered as part of the 2007 National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH), a national survey directed and funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In the NSCH study, more than 78,000 parents of children aged 3 to 17 years were asked whether their child currently had an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis – including autism, Asperger's syndrome, pervasive developmental disorder, or another ASD or whether their child had been given that diagnosis in the past, but was no longer diagnosed with ASD.

The CDC announced that an updated report from their Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network would be released by the end of the year with their preliminary results showing that approximately 1% of children in their study have an ASD. Since the ADDM study is not expected to be published for several months, we do not believe the official CDC estimate will change until that time.

These new findings reinforce that autism is an urgent and growing public health crisis that affects most individuals across their lifespan and demands a commensurate level of action from both the public and private sectors.

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© 2009 Autism Speaks Inc.

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