Autism Awareness Month

by Abigail Knowles Wolfe (BPRW)

Autism has been a subject matter covered a great deal in the American media over the past few years. According to statistics provided by the Autism Society of America (ASA) as issued February 2007 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the prevalence of autism has risen in past years, which is likely due to clinicians’ expertise in modern diagnosis. A reported one out of every 150 American children has some form of autism as indicated by a sample of 8 year olds in the years 2000 and 2002. Boys are more likely than girls to have this disorder therefore the numbers are higher when considering males, with a prevalence of around one in 94 boys represented.

Autism itself is a complex developmental disability that appears during the primary three years of a child’s life and affects his or her ability to communicate and interact with other people. Most often referred to as Autism Spectrum Disorder, one of the major Pervasive Developmental Disorders found in children, autism is defined by a certain set of behaviors that affect each individual differently and to varying degrees.

April has been designated National Autism Awareness Month in order to highlight the growing need for awareness about autism and to educate the public about this disorder and its affect on families and individuals living with it. Autism occurs equally across ethnic groups, however researchers at universities across the nation, such as Duke University, are looking into the genetics of autism in African Americans as such studies are rare and may prove to be helpful in developing new treatments for all autistic people. With enhanced education and outreach initiatives, we as a nation can focus on better serving those faced with autism.