Delays on the order of several years between initial parent concern and an eventual diagnosis have been attributed to multiple referrals or to the fact that parents were told to take a “wait and see” approach ( Caronna, Augustyn & Zuckerman, 2007 Zuckerman, Lindly, & Sinche, 2015).

Many parents of children with ASD first become concerned about their children's development in the course of the first two years of life and in some cases, parents express concerns prior to the child's first birthday ( Baghdadli et al., 2003 Chawarska et al., 2007 De Giacomo & Fombonne, 1998). 2007 Dawson et al., 2010 Rogers et al., 2012 Rogers et al., 2014 Steiner, Gengoux, Klin, & Chawarska, 2013). Early identification can lower the age at which intensive intervention begins, potentially maximizing positive outcomes for social-communicative, cognitive, language, and adaptive functioning in children with ASD ( Bradshaw, Koegel, & Koegel, 2017 Chawarska, et al. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommended two universal ASD screenings before age two ( Johnson & Myers, 2007) in order to promote more positive long-term outcomes for children with autism. With recent studies estimating the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at around 1.5% ( Baio, 2014 Christensen, 2016), establishing the means to detect it early in development in the general population is imperative.

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