A Pilot Study on Autism Spectrum Disorders in Mali: Parental concerns about child developmental milestones and late diagnostic age

Abstract Background: In Mali, the health facility-based prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in Mali was 4.5% (105/2,343) and the age of first medical visit for autistic children was around 7 years old in 2018. Parental recognition of developmental abnormalities initiates the early autism detection and diagnosis. In this pilot study, our aim was to investigate if parental concerns were associated with early first medical visits and subsequent ASD diagnostic in Mali. Methods: We conducted a pilot study from November 2017 to July 2019. We surveyed 57 parents of autistic children aged 3-14 years old. Results: Parents were concerned over verbal communication in 54.1% and reciprocal social interaction in 43.8%. Children with ASD had their first medical visit after 18 months old in 66.7%, ≥ two medical visits in 87.7%, and were identified after 36 months old in 76.8%. Conclusion: Parental concerns were not significantly associated with early first medical visit and ASD identification. This pilot study will help in the design of larger studies on the same topic in Mali.

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A Pilot Study on Autism Spectrum Disorders in Mali: Parental Concerns About Child Developmental Milestones and Late Diagnostic Age

10.21203/rs.3.rs-142247/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Modibo Sangare ◽

Ya DIARRA ◽

Djeneba Konate ◽

Mohamed Sanoussi Haidara ◽

Adama Karembe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorders ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Autistic Children ◽

Medical Visit ◽

Developmental Abnormalities ◽

Medical Visits ◽

Parental Concerns ◽

Spectrum Disorders ◽

Detection And Diagnosis

Abstract BackgroundIn Mali, the health facility-based prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in Mali was 4.5% (105/2,343) and the age of first medical visit for autistic children was around 7 years old in 2018. Parental recognition of developmental abnormalities initiates the early autism detection and diagnosis. We aimed to assess the feasibility of a main study to associate parental concerns with early first medical visits and subsequent ASD diagnostic in Mali.MethodsWe conducted a pilot study from November 2017 to July 2019. We surveyed 57 parents of autistic children aged 3-14 years old.ResultsParents were concerned over verbal communication in 54.1% and reciprocal social interaction in 43.8%. Children with ASD had their first medical visit after 18 months old in 66.7%, ≥ two medical visits in 87.7%, and were identified after 36 months old in 76.8%.ConclusionParental concerns were not significantly associated with early first medical visit and ASD identification. This pilot study will help in the design of larger studies on the same topic in Mali.

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Autism Spectrum Disorders in Mali: Parental concerns about child developmental milestones and late diagnostic age

10.21203/rs.3.rs-28746/v2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Modibo Sangare ◽

Ya Diarra ◽

Djeneba Konate ◽

Mohamed S Haidara ◽

Adama Karembe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorders ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Autistic Children ◽

Medical Visit ◽

Developmental Abnormalities ◽

Medical Visits ◽

Parental Concerns ◽

Parental Recognition ◽

Spectrum Disorders ◽

Detection And Diagnosis

Abstract Background: In Mali, the national health facility-based prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) was 4.5% (105/2,343) and the age of first medical visit for autistic children was around 7 years old in 2018. Parental recognition of developmental abnormalities initiates the early autism detection and diagnosis. Our aim was to investigate if parental concerns were associated with early first medical visits and subsequent ASD diagnostic in Mali. Methods: We conducted a pilot study from November 2017 to July 2019. We surveyed parents of 57 out of 60 available autistic children aged 3-14 years old. Results: Parents were concerned over verbal communication in 54.1% and reciprocal social interaction in 43.8%. Children with ASD had their first medical visit after 18 months old in 66.7%, ≥ two medical visits in 87.7%, and were identified after 36 months old in 76.8%. Conclusion: Parental concerns were not significantly associated with early first medical visit and ASD identification. Our results will guide future full scale studies on parental concerns in ASD in Mali.

Download Full-text

Autism Spectrum Disorders in Mali: Parental concerns about child developmental milestones and late diagnostic age

10.21203/rs.3.rs-28746/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Modibo Sangare ◽

Ya Diarra ◽

Djeneba Konate ◽

Mohamed S Haidara ◽

Adama Karembe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorders ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Autistic Children ◽

Medical Visit ◽

Developmental Abnormalities ◽

Medical Visits ◽

Parental Concerns ◽

Parental Recognition ◽

Spectrum Disorders ◽

Detection And Diagnosis

Abstract Background In Mali, the health facility-based prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) was 4.5% (105/2,343) and the age of first medical visit for autistic children was around 7 years old in 2018. Parental recognition of developmental abnormalities initiates the early autism detection and diagnosis. Our aim was to investigate if parental concerns were associated with early first medical visits and subsequent ASD diagnostic in Mali. Methods We conducted a pilot study from November 2017 to July 2019. We surveyed parents of 57 autistic children aged 3-14 years old. Results Parents were concerned over verbal communication in 54.1% and reciprocal social interaction in 43.8%. Children with ASD had their first medical visit after 18 months old in 66.7%, ≥ two medical visits in 87.7%, and were identified after 36 months old in 76.8%.Conclusion: Parental concerns were not significantly associated with early first medical visit and ASD identification. A full scale study will be conducted for more consistent results.

Download Full-text