Is Mild Autism Over-Diagnosed?
04Recent article in the paper
Mr. John Rosemond, a psychologist who writes a syndicated article in the local paper, is increasingly driving me nuts, and he’s at it again. You may have seen his recent article in the Trib; he writes that children diagnosed mildly on the autism spectrum are largely just ‘quirky’, and summarily and unnecessarily diagnosed.
Very frustrating to read such nonsense
Ridiculous comments such as that do nothing but cause parents confusion and strife. Practitioners go to great lengths to ensure a child, when diagnosed, is done so accurately and reliably.
Are there false-positives?
When a child has mild symptoms, determining whether the child meets all the diagnostic criteria can, in fact, become challenging. However, even in those situations, the ‘mild’ and ‘borderline’ symptomology is thoroughly explained to the parent as just that, as well as the likelihood of an excellent prognosis. In order to error on the side of caution, all too often the child is not outright diagnosed as having autism and, in fact, mild autism is under, not over-diagnosed.
The symptoms must be ‘getting in the way’ of the child’s day-to-day functioning
The DSM-V specifies, for autism spectrum disorder, Criterion D, that “symptoms cause clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of current functioning.” Put another way, the symptoms, no matter how mild, must be ‘getting in the way’ of the child’s functioning. In that respect, parents who bring their child for an evaluation do so for a reason. It’s not because they’re bored and have nothing better to do. It’s because their kids, even if presenting with only “mild” symptoms to the casual observer, are appreciably struggling in some ways. It is vital to spell-out the extent to which autism symptomology is contributing to these struggles, and provide the necessary treatment. Casting doubt on this process only hurts children.
He’s “done a lot of reading…”!
Mr. Rosemond naively and arrogantly claims to have “done a good amount of reading on this issue” and that’s how he has come to his conclusion. Instead, he should spend a week with you, and me, and kiddos directly experiencing these struggles, and maybe then he would get a clue.
Hope that helps to clear up that misinformation
God bless you as you continue to pursue what’s best for your child and the very best in treatment options. Please feel free to let me know of any questions or concerns you have along the way, and how I can further assist you in that effort.
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Dr. Carosso, who holds a Graduate Certificate in Applied Behavioral Analysis in Special Education, has conducted more than 20,000 evaluations on children with autism, learning problems and dyslexia, attention-deficit, trauma, depression, bipolar, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, and related difficulties. He has supervised dozens of clinical teams and regularly provides consultation to organizations, agencies, and parents at 6 office locations in four counties counties. Dr. Carosso also has presented at regional conferences, served on the advisory boards of local autism societies, and has served for over 10 years as an evaluator and expert witness in child welfare cases.
He produces a video series, "Dr. C's Morning Minute," that provides helpful strategies for effectively managing childhood autism, ADHD, and behavioral, emotional and learning issues. Dr. Carosso formerly co-hosted the Live weekly PCNC cable television program "Community Psychiatric Centers Presents", targeting child mental health issues, and was a regular guest on various talk shows, including "Night Talk", discussing childhood issues and related current events.
