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This one’s for the girls

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This week, Drs. Casey Burrows from @UMN and Shuting Zheng from @UTexas discuss a new paper looking at sex differences in autism features from 20-40 months of age. A new analysis done with data from the Baby Siblings Research Consortium concludes that, early in life, girls with autism show differences in some autism features (like joint attention) compared to boys. There are many reasons for this, including that boys and girls are just different, period. However, it adds to mounting data which may help explain why more males are diagnosed compared to females. More research needs to examine how girls and females present, what symptoms are harder to observe in females andy why, and most importantly, sheds insight how girls and females with autism need to be specifically supported. More here:

https://www.epicresearch.org/articles/diagnosis-of-autism-occurring-earlier-in-children-though-still-late-for-many-initial-diagnosis-in-adulthood-increasing-in-women

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2837366

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How many people can be described as having “profound autism”?

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Quick answer: 26.7%. But what is “profound autism” and why is this label necessary? Have the rates of profound autism changed over time? How many do not have profound autism and are their needs different and how? Listen to this week’s ASF podcast and read the paper here: https://autismsciencefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/CDC-Profound-Autism-Statistics_ASF-Copy.pdf

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A conversation with Clare Harrop about autism in boys and girls

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Recently, Clare Harrop from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill published two papers which help explain the differences between boys and girls with autism, at least in kids and toddlers.  She graciously agreed to talk with us about these findings and what it means for better identification and diagnosis of girls with ASD, and where future research is needed.  Thank you to Dr. Harrop for this insight and for your work in this area!