Summary: A newly developed questionnaire can detect autism in children between the ages of 18 to 30 months.
Source: University of Cambridge
New research led by the University of Cambridge suggests that autism can be detected at 18-30 months using the Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (Q-CHAT), but it is not possible to identify every child at a young age who will later be diagnosed as autistic.
The results are published today in The BMJ Paediatrics Open.
The team at the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge conducted a prospective population screening study of nearly 4,000 toddlers using a parent-report instrument they developed, called the Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (Q-CHAT). Toddlers were screened at 18 months and followed up at 4 years.
The Q-CHAT is a revision of the original CHAT first published by the same authors in the 1990s. It retains the key items but includes additional items that examine language development, repetitive and sensory behaviours, as well as other aspects of social communication behaviour.
Each of the 25 items contains a range of response options, allowing for the endorsement of a reduced rate of key behaviours. In effect, this ‘dimensionalises’ each item (using a five-point scale of frequency), allowing for variability in responses and a better understanding of the distributions across the specific traits. The revision was motivated by trying to improve on the accuracy of screening toddlers for autism.
In the new research, in phase one, 13,070 caregivers were invited to complete the Q-CHAT about their child at 18-30 months. 3,770 caregivers returned the Q-CHAT, of whom 121 were invited for an autism diagnostic assessment.
In phase two, the sample was followed up when the children were 4, using the Childhood Autism Screening Test (CAST), and a checklist enquiring whether any of the children had been referred or diagnosed with any developmental conditions, including autism. Autism assessments were made using internationally recognized methods.
The sensitivity (the proportion of autistic children correctly identified by the Q-CHAT as being autistic) of the Q-CHAT in predicting autism at phase two is 44%, and the specificity (the proportion of children who are not autistic and who are correctly identified by the Q-CHAT as not being autistic) is 98%. Results also showed that the ‘positive predictive value’ (the proportion whose screened positive on the Q-CHAT who were found to be autistic) is 28%.
This study demonstrates that early detection and diagnosis of autism is possible using the Q-CHAT, since all 11 children who were classified as autistic scored at or above the cut-point of 39. The Q-CHAT did not identify all children during toddlerhood who were later diagnosed with autism at age 4. This likely reflects that some autistic children do not show symptoms of sufficient severity until later in childhood.
In other studies the team have found some autistic people do not receive a diagnosis until their teens or even adulthood, perhaps because family support cushions the need for a diagnosis until social demands increase, for example at transition to secondary school or transition to adulthood.
Dr Carrie Allison, Director of Research Strategy at the Autism Research Centre, and who led the study, said: “This study tells us that autism can be detected during the toddler years, and that other children may only be identified as autistic later. Repeat screening and surveillance across development may be a better approach rather than relying on a single time-point.”
Professor Tony Charman, Professor of Clinical Child Psychology at Kings College London, and a member of the team, said: “Screening for autism in infancy means that children can be fast-tracked into early intervention, which we know can lead to better outcomes for many children. This is an exciting advance because most other autism screening measures in toddlers have not been subject to rigorous population studies of this kind.”
Professor Sir Simon Baron-Cohen, Director of the Autism Research Centre and a member of the team, said: “25 years ago our team was the first to show autism could be screened and diagnosed as young as 18 months of age. This new study shows how our original screening instrument – the CHAT – has been revised into a better instrument – the Q-CHAT, which can pick up children who need an autism diagnosis. Early detection means happier, healthier, children and families because they can be targeted with support.”
About this autism research news
Source: University of Cambridge
Contact: Craig Brierley – University of Cambridge
Image: The image is in the public domain
Original Research: Open access.
“Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (Q-CHAT). A population screening study with follow-up: the case for multiple time-point screening for autism” by Allison, C., Matthews, F.E, Ruta, L., Pasco, G., Soufer, R., Brayne, C., Charman, T., & Baron-Cohen, S. BMJ Pediatrics Open
Abstract
Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (Q-CHAT). A population screening study with follow-up: the case for multiple time-point screening for autism
Objective
This is a prospective population screening study for autism in toddlers aged 18–30 months old using the Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (Q-CHAT), with follow-up at age 4.
Design
Observational study.
Setting
Luton, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire in the UK.
Participants
13 070 toddlers registered on the Child Health Surveillance Database between March 2008 and April 2009, with follow-up at age 4; 3770 (29%) were screened for autism at 18–30 months using the Q-CHAT and the Childhood Autism Spectrum Test (CAST) at follow-up at age 4.
Interventions
A stratified sample across the Q-CHAT score distribution was invited for diagnostic assessment (phase 1). The 4-year follow-up included the CAST and the Checklist for Referral (CFR). All with CAST ≥15, phase 1 diagnostic assessment or with developmental concerns on the CFR were invited for diagnostic assessment (phase 2). Standardised diagnostic assessment at both time-points was conducted to establish the test accuracy of the Q-CHAT.
Main outcome measures
Consensus diagnostic outcome at phase 1 and phase 2.
Results
At phase 1, 3770 Q-CHATs were returned (29% response) and 121 undertook diagnostic assessment, of whom 11 met the criteria for autism. All 11 screened positive on the Q-CHAT. The positive predictive value (PPV) at a cut-point of 39 was 17% (95% CI 8% to 31%). At phase 2, 2005 of 3472 CASTs and CFRs were returned (58% response). 159 underwent diagnostic assessment, including 82 assessed in phase 1. All children meeting the criteria for autism identified via the Q-CHAT at phase 1 also met the criteria at phase 2. The PPV was 28% (95% CI 15% to 46%) after phase 1 and phase 2.
Conclusions
The Q-CHAT can be used at 18–30 months to identify autism and enable accelerated referral for diagnostic assessment. The low PPV suggests that for every true positive there would, however, be ~4–5 false positives. At follow-up, new cases were identified, illustrating the need for continued surveillance and rescreening at multiple time-points using developmentally sensitive instruments. Not all children who later receive a diagnosis of autism are detectable during the toddler period.
