Is Autism being MIS-diagnosed?

[jodifla]

His one doctor mentioned that he sees a lot of kids who have been dx'd with ASD that in his opinion aren't truly ASD kids, but have some other issue that demonstrates similarly. In addition, both he and another one of DS's doctors have said that at the younger ages, it is difficult to get a true dx. That as the child gets a bit older, the dx most likely will be tweaked some. But, that the ASD dx helps getting the child the services needed at an earlier age to do the most good.

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I agree with most of your quote, but I think it's a national shame that parents feel compelled to accept a wrong label for the child in order to get services. The label shouldn't drive the services, the child's needs should drive the services. This is one of the many problems with the ASD label, which is so broad as to be meaningless. Children need pinpointed Dxs to help them best.

The problem with the autism label for a non-austistic child is that it can send them totally down the wrong road of services, and can lead parents to feel pressured to try all kinds of unproven treatments, like chelation or hyperbaric chambers.

 

[BeckyScott]

I think not much progress will be made that way until they figure out the cause. Or causes. Because until then it will be hard to come up with an accurate test.

As it stands now, the child is tested on manifestations. And many (if not all) of the manifestations could be attributed to other disabilities-- it's the combination of them, in some mysterious way, that defines autism. Is there a DNA test that defines it? A metals test? An intelligence test? Something going on with the parents? In utero? Was the mom exposed to lead at exactly the 67th day of pregnancy, or did she drink one too many cans of Diet Coke? Did Dad have wacky sperm? Gosh, maybe mom was a refrigerator parent or had psychological problems. (yeah, I didn't used to have psychological problems until I had to deal with all the red tape!) Maybe the baby was chewing on a toy covered with chemical cleaners. Aside from the more common theories, there is plenty of wacky theory going on too. Many people think they know the cause, but there isn't anything that everyone agrees on. And I just don't think that until the cause is defined, there will be an accurate way to diagnose.

Unfortunately, the autism community has, for years now, been more focused on arguing their own agendas than on investigating all the possibilities.

 

[KirstenB]

I think not much progress will be made that way until they figure out the cause. Or causes. Because until then it will be hard to come up with an accurate test.

As it stands now, the child is tested on manifestations. And many (if not all) of the manifestations could be attributed to other disabilities-- it's the combination of them, in some mysterious way, that defines autism. Is there a DNA test that defines it? A metals test? An intelligence test? Something going on with the parents? In utero? Was the mom exposed to lead at exactly the 67th day of pregnancy, or did she drink one too many cans of Diet Coke? Did Dad have wacky sperm? Gosh, maybe mom was a refrigerator parent or had psychological problems. (yeah, I didn't used to have psychological problems until I had to deal with all the red tape!) Maybe the baby was chewing on a toy covered with chemical cleaners. Aside from the more common theories, there is plenty of wacky theory going on too. Many people think they know the cause, but there isn't anything that everyone agrees on. And I just don't think that until the cause is defined, there will be an accurate way to diagnose.

Unfortunately, the autism community has, for years now, been more focused on arguing their own agendas than on investigating all the possibilities.

Amen to that last sentence!! It is probably the most frustrating part about the whole disorder. I'm so sick of all the drama and baggage within the community. The good thing is the people I know in real life dealing with autism are pretty open-minded, and rational. Actually, just like most everybody here. Some of the autism web sites are just disheartening to even visit.