From Lisa Jo Rudy,
Your Guide to Autism.
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About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by Steven Gans, MD

How do doctors screen children for autism spectrum disorders?

A. Before getting too concerned, it's important to have an expert or experts screen your child for autism. Several screening instruments have been developed to quickly gather information about a child's social and communicative development within medical settings. Among them are:

• The Checklist of Autism in Toddlers (CHAT)
• The modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT)
• The Screening Tool for Autism in Two-Year-Olds (STAT)
• the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ, for children 4 years of age and older)

Some screening instruments rely solely on parent responses to a questionnaire, and some rely on a combination of parent report and observation.

If screenings show indicators of autism, the practitioner may then move on to the next steps: ruling out other disorders and diagnosing autism.

References:

• Early Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders Jennifer Pinto-Martin, PhD and Susan E. Levy, MD Current Treatment Options in Neurology 2004, 6:391-400
• American Academy of Pediatrics: The pediatrician's role in the diagnosis and management of autistic spectrum disorder in children. Pediatrics 2001 May;107(5):1221-6.
• National Institute of Mental Health, Autism Spectrum Disorders (Pervasive Developmental Disorders) A detailed booklet that describes symptoms, causes, and treatments, with information on getting help and coping. 2004