Brief Report: Prevalence of Self-injurious Behaviors among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder-A Population-Based Study.
Gnakub N Soke, Steven A Rosenberg, Richard F Hamman and 8 others
PMID 27565654WHAT IT FOUND
27.7% of 8-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder in selected areas of the United States had documented self-injury, and prevalence varied widely by site.
Ask about head banging, hair pulling, arm biting, eye poking, and skin scratching, especially with cognitive or adaptive delays.
Key findings
01Among 8,065 children with autism spectrum disorder included in the analyses, documented self-injurious behavior averaged 27.7% across the 2000, 2006, and 2008 surveillance years.
02Children with documented self-injurious behavior were more likely to have developmental regression and IQ and adaptive test scores of 70 or lower, and to live in the lowest median income census tract quartile.
03Site-specific prevalence varied widely, with the lowest site-year estimate at 12.8% and the highest at 54.0%.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The ADDM Network was not intended to represent all 8-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder in the United States. Self-injury was identified from existing records, so children with poor access to services, no records, or records that did not describe minor self-injury could be missed. Community providers may not have used the same definition of self-injury, which could lower the reported prevalence. Differences between sites may reflect local record availability, awareness, services, demographics, or year-to-year variation, not true differences in self-injury. The study reports associations only, so it does not show that cognitive, adaptive, income, or access factors caused self-injury. Thirteen children were excluded because self-injury data were missing.
Declared interests
The paper states that all authors reported no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 27.7% prevalence as a direct clinical assessment of every child with autism spectrum disorder; it came from existing records and may miss unrecorded or minor self-injury.