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Screening Questionnaire Methods:

Various other parent based screening questionnaires have been used in community and routine paediatrics follow up. They are:

M-CHAT (modified checklist for Autism in toddlers):

It is a free online tool with immediate scoring.
The M-CHAT is designed to be administered to parents/guardians and interpreted by pediatric providers in the context of developmental surveillance. The online version at M-CHAT.org (https://www.m-chat.org) is approved by the M-CHAT authors. The site provides details of scoring and children who can be at risk for Autism.

All children found at risk should be confirmed by one of the diagnostic methods listed below:

STAT (Screening tool for Autism in toddlers and young children):

The STAT is a pay for use tool which also requires training. The STAT is an empirically derived, interactive measure that has been developed to screen for Autism in children between 24 and 36 months of age. It is designed for use by community service providers who work with young children in assessment or intervention settings and who have experience with Autism. The STAT™ consists of 12 items and takes about 20 minutes to administer. Activities assess key social and communicative behaviors including imitation, play, requesting, and directing attention. The protocol and test material can be purchased online and interactive web training is available for test givers. Certification is available after training.

Official website: http://stat.vueinnovations.com/about

Definitive diagnostic tests to be administered by trained professionals are:

1. CARS (Childhood Autism Rating Scale):

The CARS, a pay for use scale is a 15-item behaviour rating scale that helps to identify children more than 2 years of age with Autism and to distinguish them from developmentally handicapped children who are not autistic. In addition, it distinguishes mild-to-moderate from severe Autism. The CARS includes items drawn from five prominent systems for diagnosing Autism. Each item covers a particular characteristic, ability, or behaviour: Relationships with People, Imitation, Affect, Use of Body, Relation to Non-human Objects, Adaptation to Environmental Change, Visual Responsiveness, Auditory Responsiveness, Near Receptor Responsiveness, Anxiety Reaction, Verbal Communication, Nonverbal Communication, Activity Level, Intellectual Functioning, and the clinician's general impression. Test and training material can be purchased online from various authorized web-portals. Revised version for high functioning Autism is also available now as CARS2. The CARS can be used by professionals such as physicians, special educators, school psychologists, speech pathologists, and audiologists.

2. GARS (Gilliam Autism Rating Scale)

Gilliam Autism Rating Scale is pay for use, a norm-referenced instrument that assists teachers, parents, and clinicians in identifying and diagnosing Autism in individuals aged 3 through 22 years and in estimating the severity of the disorder. Using objective, frequency-based ratings, the GARS can be individually administered in 5 to 10 minutes. The assessment consists of 42 clearly stated items describing the characteristic behaviors of persons with Autism. The items are grouped into three subscales:

  • Stereotyped Behaviors
  • Communication
  • Social Interaction


GARS3 kits, manual and software are available for online purchase.

3. ADOS(Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule):

A pay for use tool which requires time and training, the ADOS allows one to accurately assess and diagnose Autism spectrum disorders across age, developmental level, and language skills.

Ages: 12 months to adulthood

Administration Time: 40-60 mins

Training workshops are conducted regularly for professionals. Test material and kit (handscore and software) are available online.





 
 
  Autism Spectrum Disorders or ASD is commonly called Autism Neuro- typical: A term used for people who do not have Autism or ASD  
 
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