Among those with autism spectrum disorder, Black children have lower rate of screening than White, other\/multiracial children<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
WEDNESDAY, March 22, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are less likely to receive vision screening at well-child visits at ages 3 and 5 years than those without ASD, according to a study published online March 21 in Pediatrics<\/em>.<\/p>\n Kimberly Hoover, M.D., from the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, and colleagues obtained data from 63,829 well-child visits for 3- to 5-year-olds between January 2016 and December 2019 to examine the rate of vision screening among children with and without ASD. Billing codes for vision screening were a proxy for screening completion.<\/p>\n The researchers found that children with ASD were less likely to have vision screening than those without ASD (36.5 versus 59.9 percent). The rates of screening were lowest during the 3-year visit. Among those with ASD, the rate of screening was lower for Black versus White and other\/multiracial children (27.6 percent versus 39.7 and 39.8 percent, respectively). Hispanic children had higher use of photoscreening, resulting in a higher overall rate of vision screening than non-Hispanic children. For children with ASD, practice region influenced the rates of vision screening because of more photoscreening.<\/p>\n “Children with ASD are significantly less likely to receive a vision screening at well visits compared with typically developing children. This disparity was even greater among younger children and Black children,” the authors write. “Instrument-based screening is a useful tool to decrease disparity, especially among high-risk patient groups.”<\/p>\n Abstract\/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)<\/a><\/p>\n <\/i><\/p>\n