Kids could have shorter wait times for autism diagnoses in Ontario, study suggests

Children in Ontario should not have to wait so long for an autism diagnosis, especially since earlier detection can lead to better outcomes, according to the authors of a new report.

Kisd who show signs of autism can wait several months or even years to be officially diagnosed, according to Dr. Melanie Penner, a senior clinician scientist and developmental pediatrician at Toronto's Holland Bloorview Rehabilitation Hospital. Those long wait times can have a detrimental impact on the children involved, she told CBC Toronto. 

"We know that the early years are really important for brain development. They're a really important time for … learning communication skills, learning about social interaction and play," Penner said.

"And so, those are the years when we really want to provide children with access to that specialized instruction that can help them with some of those areas."

Penner and her colleagues recently published a new report that she hopes will help cut down on some of these wait times. The report found that general pediatricians were able to accurately diagnose autism in children 90 per cent of the time. 

Children who show signs of autism are typically sent to a sub-specialist after being assessed by their pediatrician, Penner said. However, there's a backlog of cases requiring an assessment because the number of sub-specialists in the province is relatively small.

The report's findings suggest in many cases, a pediatrician's diagnosis should be enough to start children on a treatment plan, rather than having to wait months or years for a second opinion.

To reach its findings, Penner's team enrolled 17 general pediatricians from all across Ontario. Those physicians assessed 106 children under five-and-a-half years old who exhibited developmental concerns but who had no official diagnosis. Within four weeks, the same group of children was also assessed independently by a team of autism specialists. The results were compared to reach the final findings.

"However, the second part of this is that if a pediatrician or other doctor doesn't think autism is present, we want them to be a bit cautious in making that determination," Penner said. 

The report found that in cases where the pediatrician did not make a diagnosis of autism, the specialist team only agreed 60 per cent of the time. 

In such cases, Penner cautioned, if a child has exhibited some features of autism, "those are the kids for whom a further assessment might be needed in order to come to that diagnostic conclusion."

Stephanie Ridley, of Burlington, Ont., the mother of an 11-year-old with autism named Ewan, told CBC Toronto she welcomes any opportunity for an early diagnosis. 

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that an earlier diagnosis is better ... just so that you can get on the right path," she said.

Ridley said Ewan was lucky because he was diagnosed before he was two years old, but she's spoken to a number of other parents who have had to wait much longer.