The DSM-5-TR, published in March of 2022 by the American Psychiatric Association, has made two small but significant changes to the criteria for diagnosing autism. These changes add clarity and nuance, they say, to how the reference text defines autism, but are they likely to change diagnostic practice and thus prevalence rates?
A study conducted in Australia found that the incidence of autism increased from 2010 to 2013, and then plateaued to 2015. A significant trend-relative reduction in the number of children registered to receive autism-specific funding was evident post 2013, suggesting the more stringent DSM-5 criteria may have curbed the trend of increasing diagnoses over time. Therefore, it seems that autism diagnoses have trended up until 2013 and then plateaued or trended down after that.
Why do you think this trend has reversed?
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Precisely. When capitalism can't resolve it's own contradictions, it restricts access to protect itself. I'm not saying that history repeats itself, but it sure does rhyme.
They don’t want to have to provide services, so they limit diagnoses 😡
Precisely. When capitalism can't resolve it's own contradictions, it restricts access to protect itself. I'm not saying that history repeats itself, but it sure does rhyme.
Autism is a spectrum. It’s not a catch-all diagnosis.