A small percentage of children who had been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder as toddlers no longer showed symptoms of the disorder four years later, but most continued to have emotional or learning disorders, according to a study that was presented at a recent meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies in San Diego.
The findings came from a study of 569 children living in New York between 2003 and 2013. They had all been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder through an early-intervention program around age 2½. But 38 children—about 7 percent—showed no further signs of autism by age 6.
Those 38 children did have normal cognitive function, but many, 68 percent, also had learning disabilities. Nearly half had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and a quarter had disabilities such as anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, or selective mutism. Nearly 75 percent of the children required academic supports.
