Regional autism rates point to impact of awareness, training

Children’s odds of getting an autism diagnosis depend on where they live in the United States, according to a new study1. The variation persists after controlling for a family’s socioeconomic status and certain environmental factors, suggesting that it reflects differences in access to medical care.

Big differences in autism rates could hint at the influence of an environmental factor — for instance, societal resources — that is more abundant in some areas than in others.

The results also support the idea that the increase in autism over the past two decades is largely due to growing awareness and better training of doctors.

Read more here at Spectrum.