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The Role of Demographics in the Age of Autism Diagnosis in Jerusalem

  • S.I. : Early Detection In Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • Published:
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Abstract

Early diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children enables earlier access to services and better ability to predict subsequent development. A vast body of literature consistently shows discrepancies in the age of diagnosis between children from varying socio-economic levels, cultural and ethnic backgrounds. The present study examines the effect of sociodemographic factors on age of ASD diagnosis among the three primary ethnic sectors in Jerusalem region: secular and modern religious Jews, ultra-Orthodox Jews and Arabs. Findings indicate minimal differences in age of diagnosis prior to the age of six, although Arab children of this age were largely minimally verbal. After age six, no Arab children were referred for an evaluation.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the children and families who made this study possible and the clinical staff of Leumit Healthcare Child Developmental Center.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Seymour Fox School of Education, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mt. Scopus, 9190501, Jerusalem, Israel

    Judah Koller, Ronny Shalev, Chen Schallamach & Thomas P. Gumpel

  2. Leumit Healthcare Services, Jerusalem, Israel

    Michal Begin

Authors
  1. Judah Koller
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  2. Ronny Shalev
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  3. Chen Schallamach
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  4. Thomas P. Gumpel
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  5. Michal Begin
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Contributions

JK and MB conceived of the study, and participated in its design and coordination along with RS; RS was responsible for data collection and organization; MB was responsible for all clinical characterization upon which the study is based; RS and TPG performed the statistical analyses; JK and RS drafted the manuscript with CS; All authors participated in manuscript preparation and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Judah Koller.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the medical center’s research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The data analysis was conducted while separating the relevant data from identifying information, such as name and ID number, to maintain a proper lever of anonymity for the children and their families.

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Koller, J., Shalev, R., Schallamach, C. et al. The Role of Demographics in the Age of Autism Diagnosis in Jerusalem. J Autism Dev Disord 51, 769–777 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04107-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04107-9

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