Over the course of this project, I have talked a lot about the increase in Autism diagnosis and the importance of early intervention. However, an article from the Scientific American suggests that these diagnostic methods often overlook girls.
In the article, Kevin Pelphrey, an autism researcher at Yale University, states that he didn’t even notice the disorder in his own daughter, who received a diagnosis at the age of 5. Her brother, on the other hand, was diagnosed at just 16 months. Their mom describes how different the diagnostic process was for both her kids. With her son, it was simple process. Although for her daughter, she went from doctor to doctor and was told to simply “watch and wait”. “We got a lot of different random little diagnoses,” she recalls in the article. “They kept saying, ‘Oh, you have a girl. It's not Autism.’”
The article argues that the criteria for diagnosing Autism (see my post How is Autism Diagnosed? for more information) is created from studies done solely on boys. Girls were overlooked in past studies. Pelphrey and other researchers believe, that women are not diagnosed early because their symptoms look different. Others may not receive a diagnosis or be given a misdiagnosis like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
To look more into how Autism affects women and find ways to meet the needs of women on the spectrum, Pelphrey and team are in the process of studying young girls and women with Autism. This study follows participants over the course of childhood through early adulthood. Girls in the study are also compared with boys that have ASD, as well as typically developing children of both sexes, using brain scans, genetic testing and other measures. These comparisons can help researchers see how Autism differs between both sexes and how social and biological factors impact gender-typical behaviors.
Pelphrey is discovering that girls with Autism are different from other typically developing girls in how their brain perceives social information. However, it is not the same as boys with autism. Each girl's brain instead looks like that of a typical boy of the same age. He accounts this to reduced activity in regions normally associated with socializing (which is more common to typically developing boys). These brain-activity measures would not be considered “autistic” in a boy.
Pelphrey and team are hoping to find more information about this concept through the course of their study. Yet already, the results are quite striking. It brings into question many ideas of gender roles and male bias never associated with Autism before.
In the article, Kevin Pelphrey, an autism researcher at Yale University, states that he didn’t even notice the disorder in his own daughter, who received a diagnosis at the age of 5. Her brother, on the other hand, was diagnosed at just 16 months. Their mom describes how different the diagnostic process was for both her kids. With her son, it was simple process. Although for her daughter, she went from doctor to doctor and was told to simply “watch and wait”. “We got a lot of different random little diagnoses,” she recalls in the article. “They kept saying, ‘Oh, you have a girl. It's not Autism.’”
The article argues that the criteria for diagnosing Autism (see my post How is Autism Diagnosed? for more information) is created from studies done solely on boys. Girls were overlooked in past studies. Pelphrey and other researchers believe, that women are not diagnosed early because their symptoms look different. Others may not receive a diagnosis or be given a misdiagnosis like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
To look more into how Autism affects women and find ways to meet the needs of women on the spectrum, Pelphrey and team are in the process of studying young girls and women with Autism. This study follows participants over the course of childhood through early adulthood. Girls in the study are also compared with boys that have ASD, as well as typically developing children of both sexes, using brain scans, genetic testing and other measures. These comparisons can help researchers see how Autism differs between both sexes and how social and biological factors impact gender-typical behaviors.
Pelphrey is discovering that girls with Autism are different from other typically developing girls in how their brain perceives social information. However, it is not the same as boys with autism. Each girl's brain instead looks like that of a typical boy of the same age. He accounts this to reduced activity in regions normally associated with socializing (which is more common to typically developing boys). These brain-activity measures would not be considered “autistic” in a boy.
Pelphrey and team are hoping to find more information about this concept through the course of their study. Yet already, the results are quite striking. It brings into question many ideas of gender roles and male bias never associated with Autism before.
Hey Shambhavi! Interesting post, I was wondering, do you think there's any more of a stigma towards women with autism over men?
ReplyDeleteHey Kayla, with the difference in diagnosis and a criteria created solely on studies done on males, it can be assumed that there is more of a stigma towards women with Autism than men. However, more data and research would be needed to support that assertion.
DeleteI would have never considered a difference in diagnosis between boys and girls! Does this imply the female brain develops more quickly than a male's, since autism in a female looks normal in a male brain of the same age?
ReplyDeleteYes, females generally mature faster in certain cognitive and emotional areas than males during childhood and adolescence, which can definitely contribute to this theory. Although, more research is currently been done to support this assertion.
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