Tech startup LinusBio last week entered the early stages of developing a single-hair test to help clinicians identify markers of autism spectrum disorder in newborns, long before they start missing milestones. revealed that it is in A peer-reviewed study found that “the predictive algorithm had a sensitivity of 96.4%, a specificity of 75.4%, and an accuracy of 81.4%, he detected ASD risk as early as 1 month.” I was.
As someone who knows the history of autism well, I know that better outcomes don’t always follow early diagnosis.
Company co-founder Manish Arora told NBC News: By that time, a lot of brain development has already happened,” he said. “We want to be able to intervene early.”
As someone with autism, I have always felt incredibly conflicted about early diagnosis. It was the 1990s, when the modern understanding of autism as a spectrum began to develop, and in the 1980s the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders first gave a separate diagnosis of autism. It wasn’t too far from when I did. schizophrenia.
I often wonder how my life would have been different had I understood autism better sooner. Girls and black children often go undiagnosed, are misdiagnosed, or are diagnosed later than white and male children.
How to ensure that people with autism in marginalized communities receive an accurate diagnosis by conducting some sort of diagnostic test instead of using tests of social interaction normed on boys’ behavior. can provide
However, knowing the history of autism well, I know that early diagnosis does not always lead to positive outcomes. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the gold standard for treating autism in children However, many people with autism object to it as harmful conditioning, and some parents regret applying ABA to their children. I have never taken ABA personally, but many objections from autistic self-advocates, including the belief that ABA forces more stereotyped behaviors in autistic people, have made me think about it. Gives serious concern. Ole Ivar Lovaas, the father of modern ABA, Co-author, which later became the basis for conversion therapy.
Private equity firms play such a big role in many autism services like ABA, and I worry that concerns about the short-term profits of these firms have taken a toll on people with autism. Some people do. Even without the direct involvement of companies like LinusBio, early detection means giving children with autism a treatment that erases their innate traits before they know it. could mean.
Whenever a “breakthrough” new approach like LinusBio’s early detection test is presented, there are a few things to consider.
Importantly, focusing solely on “milestones” risks obliterating other characteristics that make up the person with autism. It doesn’t mean there is. Yes, and many people with autism have fought to integrate them into the wider disability rights movement.
After all, society has focused too much on trying to “fix” our traits. They are not diseases, they just make us different in different ways of experiencing the world.
After all, society has focused too much on trying to “fix” our traits. They are not diseases, they just make us different in different ways of experiencing the world. But it can also mean that we experience joy, love and passion in unique and exciting ways.
I feel this duality in my daily life as a journalist. Sometimes I find myself overwhelmed by the gags of the crowded press at the U.S. Capitol, and not driving due to sensory processing issues makes traveling difficult. for my job.
At the same time, autism allows me to focus on things myopicly. The fact that social politeness is as unfamiliar to me as it is to the French or Russians means that I enjoy asking questions that my colleagues shy away from. In that sense, my autism makes me a better journalist.
An overly focused focus on early biological markers, early testing, and early diagnosis is a sign that America is focusing more on what causes autism and what puts people at risk for it. Two years ago, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Board estimated that 6% of all US research funding allocated to autism research in 2018 was spent on screening and diagnosis, and 44% was spent on biodiversity of the disorder. and found that a further 19% was spent on a better understanding of disability. Risk factor. Another 13% were devoted to ‘treatment and intervention’ studies.
After all, only 6% went to services for people with autism, and only 3% went to ‘lifespan issues’. a long and happy life.
Early diagnosis is not inherently bad, nor is focusing on biology inherently wrong. These research tools can help find solutions to the obstacles faced by people with autism.
But they are just the first steps towards building a better world for people with autism. Typical neurotypical people tend to feel that people with autism tend to focus too much on a topic, rather than creating systems to support the person with autism. There seems to be an incredible focus on the biology of the disease and how to detect it early. throughout life. Here’s giving them lots of hints that they have other priorities.
