Risk factors for early intervention of children with autism spectrum disorders

Early intervention from early childhood is said to be important for children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). However, the age of diagnosis is high for children with high-functioning ASD, and it has been suggested that detection is inadequate even in 3-year-old child health checkups. In this study, research was conducted to assist in the early detection, diagnosis, and rehabilitation of children with high-functioning ASD using the Maternal and Child Health Handbook, which has a high issuance rate nationwide. Participants were children who had been diagnosed with ASD and were attending a regular elementary school. The Japanese version of the Autism Spectrum Index for Children (AQ) and the school age version of the Language and Communication Development Scale (LCSA) were used to measure current language and cognitive functions. In addition, children with an IQ of 70 or higher on the WICS-III or WISC-IV were included in the study to ensure that participants were ASD children with a certain level of cognitive function. Significant differences between the “Yes” and “No” groups in the AQ and LCSA t-tests were used for the two items extracted from the “parents’ records” of the Maternal and Child Health Handbook. The results showed that there was a significant difference between the means of the “Yes” and “No” groups in the “Can you say your name? Based on these results, it is possible to predict that children with ASD will have better social adjustment even if they can say their names at age 3. It is clear that interventions that focus on sharing feelings with others and understanding others are necessary from early on.