UPDATE: Study: Utah Ranks High in Autism Rates

February 08, 2007

By: Brooke Barker

Your baby doesn't like to be held, seems indifferent to his surroundings and sometimes laughs or cries for no reason. It could just be a growth spurt -- or autism.

The disorder is impacting an average of 1 in 119 babies in Utah County, according to a study released Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The University of Utah and Utah Department of Health have been involved with the study since 2002.

Health and education records from 14 states were compared, and Utah ranks third highest of those states for autism -- behind only New Jersey and Georgia. Utah's average rate of autism was 1 in 133. Davis, Salt Lake and Utah counties participated in the study.

The average rate of males having the disorder in Utah is 1 in 79 -- the second highest in the nation.

"It may be due to the fact that we had good cooperation from public and private institutions when gathering data," said Judith P. Zimmerman, assistant professor of psychiatry at the U.

In 1980, a similar study was conducted by the U and the University of Los Angeles, the autism rate was 20 times lower in Utah at that time.

"We are definitely seeing more cases now. There are broader terms today than there were then, we are diagnosing more milder forms of autism, and people are becoming better at recognizing it," said Zimmerman.

Utah County schools have had to meet the needs of students with autism with special education courses at the district level, and schools such as Clear Horizons or Kids on the Move -- which teach classes specifically for autism students.

"We are getting referrals everyday," said Launa Macomber, Nebo School District's special education program specialist. "I can see a big increase, and I think some of it is that there is more concern about autism today."

Both Nebo and Alpine School Districts said they have had to add more special education classes in general because of the growth.

Alpine School District added two autistic classrooms to its district last year, and plans to add two more next year.

"We want children with autism to be served close to home," said Kay Clark, Alpine's Director of Special Education. The district has small group classrooms for students with more severe cases, and offers services to those attending mainstream class.

Around 85 percent of autistic students in the state are receiving special education according to their different diagnoses, said Zimmerman.

Some symptoms of autism include children having abnormal reactions to sensory stimuli, such as smells, touch and noises. Children may also appear indifferent to their surroundings, appear content playing along, have no interest in toys, have a low activity level, and have impaired language development, according to neurologychannel.com.

"Signs of autism may appear during infancy and the disorder is usually diagnosed by the age of three," the Web site said. "Sometimes the child's development appears normal until about 2 years old and then regresses rapidly."

Some other findings from the research show males are seven times more likely to have the disorder than females in Utah.

Source: Daily Herald