Milder Autism Typically Diagnosed Later in Girls
They're more likely to show social awkwardness rather than physical symptoms, study finds
In the registry, age of first diagnosis was available for almost 10,000 children, and more than 5,100 had completed a test called the Social Responsiveness Scale, which identifies the presence and severity of social impairment.
Researchers found that boys and girls with "classic" severe autism received a diagnosis at about the same time, Lipkin said.
But girls with pervasive developmental disorder, an autism condition that impacts the development of many basic skills, tended to receive a diagnosis at an average age of 4 years, compared to 3.8 years for boys.
This also was the case with girls diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. Girls received a diagnosis at an average age of 7.6 years for the condition, which affects language and behavioral development, versus 7.1 years for boys.
Researchers also found that girls exhibited markedly different autism symptoms than boys.
Girls struggled more with the ability to recognize social cues and interact with others. They had trouble interpreting requests made of them, took things too literally, struggled to understand jokes and couldn't read into people's tone of voice or facial expressions, Lipkin said.
On the other hand, boys exhibited much more physical symptoms. They engaged in repetitive behaviors, like turning the wheel of a toy around and around for extended periods, as well as unusual mannerisms such as flapping their hands, Lipkin said.
Current autism research is delving deeper into these differences between boys and girls, to better understand them and improve diagnosis for girls, Wang said
For example, some researchers are following babies born into families where there's already someone with autism, which means that they have a higher risk of developing the disorder.
"You can start following them at a very young age to see what's happening with them," Wang said. "That's the kind of research that will hopefully shed some light on this."
In the meantime, parents must not overlook potential symptoms in girls, and doctors should keep a close eye on any girl who seems to have developmental issues, Wang said.
"Parents really need to be sensitive toward a child's social development and not expect girls to have the same problems as the boys," he said. "If they suspect something's the matter, they really need to bring this to the attention of a health care professional or someone in the child's school so it can be investigated in greater depth."
Milder Autism Typically Diagnosed Later in Girls
They're more likely to show social awkwardness rather than physical symptoms, study finds
In the registry, age of first diagnosis was available for almost 10,000 children, and more than 5,100 had completed a test called the Social Responsiveness Scale, which identifies the presence and severity of social impairment.
Researchers found that boys and girls with "classic" severe autism received a diagnosis at about the same time, Lipkin said.
But girls with pervasive developmental disorder, an autism condition that impacts the development of many basic skills, tended to receive a diagnosis at an average age of 4 years, compared to 3.8 years for boys.
This also was the case with girls diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. Girls received a diagnosis at an average age of 7.6 years for the condition, which affects language and behavioral development, versus 7.1 years for boys.
Researchers also found that girls exhibited markedly different autism symptoms than boys.
Girls struggled more with the ability to recognize social cues and interact with others. They had trouble interpreting requests made of them, took things too literally, struggled to understand jokes and couldn't read into people's tone of voice or facial expressions, Lipkin said.
On the other hand, boys exhibited much more physical symptoms. They engaged in repetitive behaviors, like turning the wheel of a toy around and around for extended periods, as well as unusual mannerisms such as flapping their hands, Lipkin said.
Current autism research is delving deeper into these differences between boys and girls, to better understand them and improve diagnosis for girls, Wang said
For example, some researchers are following babies born into families where there's already someone with autism, which means that they have a higher risk of developing the disorder.
"You can start following them at a very young age to see what's happening with them," Wang said. "That's the kind of research that will hopefully shed some light on this."
In the meantime, parents must not overlook potential symptoms in girls, and doctors should keep a close eye on any girl who seems to have developmental issues, Wang said.
"Parents really need to be sensitive toward a child's social development and not expect girls to have the same problems as the boys," he said. "If they suspect something's the matter, they really need to bring this to the attention of a health care professional or someone in the child's school so it can be investigated in greater depth."