In a special analysis piece, the New York Times (4/9, SR3, Harmon, Subscription Publication) reports, “The report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that one in 88 American children have an autism spectrum disorder has stoked a debate about why the condition’s prevalence continues to rise,” conceding that the increase could possibly be attributed to better methods of detection or perhaps to some unknown factor in the environment. However, last month’s report also “appears to be serving as a lightning rod for those who question the legitimacy of a diagnosis whose estimated prevalence has nearly doubled since 2007.” Meanwhile, an American Psychiatric Association workgroup “in charge of autism criteria for the new version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has proposed changes that would exclude some who currently qualify, reducing the combination of behavioral traits through which the diagnosis can be reached from a mind-boggling 2,027 to 11, according to one estimate.”
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— “The Autism Wars,”Amy Harmon, The New York Times, April 7, 2012.