Brief Report: Sex Differences in Parental Concerns for Toddlers with Autism Risk.
Riane K Ramsey, Lashae Nichols, Natasha N Ludwig and 3 others
PMID 29700708WHAT IT FOUND
Sex did not predict age or number of autism concerns in 669 toddlers screened at risk for autism.
Parents still reported autism-related concerns more often for boys than girls. Restricted behaviors were also more often reported for boys.
Key findings
01Parents reported more ASD concerns for toddlers subsequently diagnosed with ASD.
02In the overall at-risk sample, parents reported at least one ASD concern 1.46 times more often for boys than girls, and restricted/repetitive behavior concerns 1.74 times more often for boys than girls, regardless of later diagnosis.
03Sex was not significantly related to the age at which parents first became concerned or the number of ASD concerns reported.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample included only children who had already screened at risk for autism at well-child visits, so it may not represent toddlers who are not referred for screening. Families with another child diagnosed with ASD were excluded, so the findings may not apply to families who already have an older child with ASD. The comparison of parents naming ASD as a concern involved very few children, 4 girls and 22 boys, and was not statistically significant. Concerns were parent-reported, so they may reflect what parents noticed or named rather than clinician-observed symptoms. The study did not measure whether parental concerns led to referrals, evaluations, or diagnosis timing.
Declared interests
D.L. Robins and D. Fein are co-owners of M-CHAT, LLC, which receives royalties from companies that incorporate the M-CHAT(-R) into commercial products. The current study used the freely available version of the M-CHAT(-R). The remaining authors declared no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the finding that parents reported at least one ASD concern 1.46 times more often for boys than girls as proof that girls are less likely to have ASD. That difference was in the overall at-risk sample, regardless of later diagnosis, and the study did not measure referral decisions.