UK Study Finds 12-Fold Increase in Autism

Cate Nelson — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 12:21:23 +0000

The cases of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have risen dramatically over the past 30 years, so much so that there may be 50 percent more cases than previously suspected.

Up to 250,000 children have autism or a related condition on the autistic spectrum, but have not been diagnosed, researchers say. They are in addition to the 500,000 children who are known to be affected.

The study, conducted by Professor Simon Baron-Cohen and colleagues of the Autism Research Centre at Cambridge University, found that the increase was due to better detection and intervention.

This is disputed by a U.S. study at UC Davis, which said that California’s 7- to 8-fold increase was due only in small part by better detection, and stressed that environmental factors must be studied as a possible cause.

So now the opposite sides of the pond, and coasts for that matter, are in dispute.

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UK Study Finds 12-Fold Increase in Autism