NEW ORLEANS – To help pediatricians in diagnosing and managing autism spectrum disorders in children, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is offering an extensively revised and updated second edition of its autism toolkit, "Autism: Caring for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Resource Toolkit for Clinicians." The toolkit will be launched Oct. 20 at the AAP National Conference & Exhibition in New Orleans.
The toolkit includes more than 70 tools for health care providers, including developmental screening questionnaires and screening tools, diagnostic criteria, family handouts in English and Spanish, record-keeping tools, and clinician fact sheets on specific health concerns. The second edition – the first revision since the toolkit was originally issued in 2007 -- includes the latest AAP guidelines on autism screening, surveillance, diagnosis, treatment and referral.
"With a population prevalence of 1 in 88 children, every pediatrician needs the tools to screen for and manage the child and adolescent with an autism spectrum disorder," said pediatrician Susan L. Hyman, MD, FAAP, chair of the autism subcommittee of the AAP Council on Children with Disabilities, which developed the toolkit. "The autism toolkit was revised based on feedback from primary care providers for ease of use and includes additional and updated topic areas related to medical, behavioral and educational care."
Complementing the toolkit is the Academy's first book on autism for parents, "Autism Spectrum Disorders: What Every Parent Needs to Know" (American Academy of Pediatrics, October 2012), which offers a comprehensive and accessible index of the most up-to-date expert medical and behavioral advice. Both publications are available in the AAP bookstore on AAP.org.
Additional autism information and resources can be found at www.aap.org/autism