We retrospectively identified autism spectrum disorder (ASD) incident cases among 31,220 individuals in a population-based birth cohort based on signs and symptoms uniformly abstracted from medical and educational records. Inclusive and narrow research definitions of ASD (ASD-R I and ASD-R N , respectively) were explored, along with clinical diagnoses of ASD (ASD-C) obtained from the records. The incidence of ASD-R I, ASD-R N , and ASD-C increased significantly from 1985 to 1998, then ASD-R I and ASD-R N plateaued while the rate of ASD-C continued to increase during 1998–2004. The rising incidence of research-defined ASD may reflect improved recognition and documentation of ASD signs and symptoms. Although the frequency of threshold ASD symptoms stabilized, the rate of ASD-C continued to increase, narrowing the gap between clinical ascertainment and symptom documentation.
CITATION STYLE
Myers, S. M., Voigt, R. G., Colligan, R. C., Weaver, A. L., Storlie, C. B., Stoeckel, R. E., … Katusic, S. K. (2019). Autism Spectrum Disorder: Incidence and Time Trends Over Two Decades in a Population-Based Birth Cohort. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 49(4), 1455–1474. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-018-3834-0
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