Promoting Positive Outcomes for Individuals With ASD: Linking Early Detection, Treatment, and Long-term Outcomes

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is defined by impaired social engagement and social communication, and repetitive, restricted, or stereotyped behaviors and interests. The average age of diagnosis in the US is after the fourth birthday. However, children who start ASD-specific early intervention have better outcomes than children start later. The current study will address a gap identified by the US Prevention Services Task Force, namely that children detected through screening respond positively to early intervention. This study will directly relate early detection strategies to early intervention, and measure the impact of age of intervention onset on outcomes when children are entering kindergarten. Local pediatric providers will be randomized to provide either usual care, or to an experimental condition in which autism early detection strategies are enhanced through the addition of specific procedures. Across all sites, 8,000 children will be recruited through their participating pediatric practice. Qualifying children will receive up to one year of early intensive behavioral intervention, after getting an ASD diagnosis. Primary outcome measures will include children's cognitive functioning and ASD symptom severity, which will be measured at multiple time points. The investigators predict that this study will inform early detection strategies which will result in improving children's social and cognitive functioning, mitigating lifespan disability, reducing societal costs, and improving personal well-being and productivity of individuals with ASD.