The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has revealed that autism rates among children have skyrocketed among children, spiking dramatically each year since 2020.
A new surveillance report from the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network shows that autism rates among American 8-year-olds have just surged to the highest level ever recorded.
The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among U.S. children aged 8 has now reached an alarming 1 in 31 (32.2 per 1,000).
The figure marks a staggering 22% increase from 2020.
The study was led by Dr. Kelly A. Shaw and colleagues at the CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD),
It examined ASD rates across 16 sites, highlighting vast geographic, racial, and socioeconomic disparities in early diagnosis, cognitive impairment, and access to services.
The results of the CDC’s study were published in the journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
The 2022 surveillance effort spanned 16 states and Puerto Rico.
The researchers analyzed over 274,000 8-year-old children and 260,000 children aged 4.
Researchers used health, education, and administrative data to classify children with ASD based on diagnostic statements, special education eligibility, or ICD codes.
Bayesian models and cumulative incidence analyses