According to the Higher Institute of Health (ISS), it is estimated that in Italy, one out of 77 children has autism spectrum disorder with a higher prevalence in maleswhich they are 4.4 times more than females. These are important numbers that impact the lives of thousands of families, often lost, and that involve the school world. These are the data recalled by childhood and adolescent neuropsychiatrists who, in view of the World Autism Awareness Day, recall the importance of early diagnosis and the need for targeted and timely treatments.
“The first signs of an autism spectrum disorder generally manifest in very early childhood – underline the experts of the Italian Society of Childhood and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry Elisa Fazzi, president of Sinpia (Italian Society of Childhood and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry) and director of the Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry Operational Unit (Uonpia) of the Asst Spedali Civili and University of Brescia.- Today it is possible to arrive at a diagnosis already around the age of 2, if not earlier, thanks to a greater knowledge of the disorder and the presence of a widespread network of collaboration among pediatricians of free choice and neuropsychiatry services for childhood and adolescence, which makes it possible to intercept risk signals as early as 18 months and to start the diagnostic process with priority access, reaching a diagnosis within 2-3 years of age”.
Autism Spectrum Disorders– explain the Sinpia experts – they are a heterogeneous set of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by persistent deficits in communication and social interaction in multiple contexts and by restricted and repetitive behaviors, interests or activities. Those affected can present highly variable functioning profiles based on the presence of other disorders (intellectual disability, language disorders, attention disorders, genetic syndromes).
Early diagnosis and timely interventionthe specialists point out, are “strategic actions for improving the prognosis and quality of life” of people with Asd and their caregivers.
Fazzi reiterates the importance of the network developed within the National Autism Observatory of the ISSwhich was consolidated thanks to the Nida projects (Italian Network for the early recognition of autism spectrum disorders) funded by National Autism Fund. “We can consider early diagnosis as an objective achieved or well underway in most regions. The same does not happen – he specifies – for therapeutic interventions, which in the developmental age represent the real challenge for the National Health Service, although even in this area large progress has been made compared to the past”.
Training and adequate support for parents and caregivers they represent another “important aspect” of taking charge, the Sinpia experts point out. The World Health Organization has developed the Caregiver Skills Training (Cst), an open-access model for caregivers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism, and the ISS, in collaboration with the national network of Uonpia services, has helped to train operators “who in turn will train other operators in cascade, for a widespread effect in all the Regions”, reads a note.
“It’s more and more urgent invest in the organization and resources of childhood and adolescent neuropsychiatry services, enhancing the skills of our health system and overcoming the lack of homogeneity of the individual regional systems”, concludes Fazzi. “The experience of the projects of the National Autism Fund has shown how a targeted and coordinated investment of resources can activate very significant transformations in a short time. Now the good practices developed must be put into a system and extended to all Regions, stabilizing and adapting personnel as a priority to the territorial standards just approved in the Unified Conference and indispensable to guarantee the continuity of taking charge of users and the effective fairness of responses nationwide”.