Latino children with autism are being diagnosed less often and at older ages than non-minority children. A new study indicates the problem may be because of language barriers between pediatricians and their patients. The problem is exacerbated by doctors who don’t have culturally appropriate written materials on autism available for Latino families.
“Latino-white disparities in age at autism spectrum disorder [ASD] diagnosis may be modified by primary care pediatrician [PCP] practices and beliefs,” the researchers explain.
They looked at these factors in 267 PCP practices in California:
• ASD and developmental screening practices
• attitudes toward ASD identification in Latino children
• and barriers to ASD identification for Latino children.
Researchers sent surveys to the PCPs to find out whether they were bilingual, how they screened for autism, their perceptions of parent knowledge of Latino and white families, and reports of difficulties they had in assessing for ASDs in Latino and white children. The survey also sought to determine the PCPs’ perceptions of barriers to early identification of ASD in Latino children.
Eighty-one percent of the the physicians offered some type of developmental screening, but only 29 percent offered screening in Spanish, which is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Additionally, most PCPs thought that Latino parents were less knowledgeable about ASDs than white parents. The physicians had more difficulty assessing ASD risk for Latino children whose primary family language was Spanish than they did for white children, even when the PCP used recommended ASD screening methods. The most frequent barrier to ASD identification in Latinos was access to developmental specialists.
“Multiple factors in the primary care setting may contribute to delayed ASD identification for Latinos,” the researchers conclude. “Promoting language-appropriate screening, disseminating culturally appropriate ASD materials to Latino families, improving the specialist workforce, and providing PCP support in screening and referral of Latino children may be important ways to reduce racial and ethnic differences in care.”