Khaberni - A recent scientific study revealed that autism spectrum disorders may be prevalent among females and males at similar rates, in results that contradict prevailing estimates indicating that autism is more common among males.
The study, conducted by researchers and published in the British Medical Journal, showed that the well-known gap in autism diagnosis rates between the genders significantly narrows at later ages, as diagnoses in girls increase during adolescence and beyond, erasing the gap recorded in childhood.
According to data from "Reuters", diagnoses of autism have increased over the past three decades, with three males diagnosed for every female, and the condition is often detected before the age of ten.
To analyze diagnostic rates as they advance in age, researchers from Sweden and the United States followed data on about 2.7 million people born in Sweden between 1985 and 2022, from birth up to a maximum age of 37 years.
The results showed that 2.8% of individuals were diagnosed with autism at an average age of 14, with higher diagnostic rates among males in the age group from 10 to 14 years old, compared to an increase in diagnoses among females from 15 to 19 years old.
The study noted that the ratio of males to females gradually narrows to about 1:1 by the age of 20; indicating that autism may be equally common among both genders over the long term.
In an accompanying editorial, Anne Cary, an advocate for patient rights, wrote that these findings, along with other recent research, demonstrate that “current practices fail to detect autism in a large number of women except at later stages of life, and some may never be diagnosed at all”.
The study noted that it did not take into account genetic or environmental factors, or accompanying disorders, such as: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or intellectual disability, which may play a role in the diagnostic pathway.
