Parent concerns prior to an assessment of autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review.

Abstract

When a parent has concerns about their child's development, there is a lag between seeking and receiving health information. When waiting, parents may speculate about a possible diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, but it is unclear what types of concerns might drive this speculation. To determine the types of concerns parents may have before their child is assessed, we conducted a systematic review that explored parent concerns before an autism spectrum disorder assessment. Our aim was to determine the types of concerns that might drive parents to seek medical help for their child's development. Four online databases were searched and 10 articles reporting on 9 studies matched our inclusion criteria. In these cohorts, parents reported autism spectrum disorder-specific concerns (i.e. communication, social or stereotyped behaviour concerns) or non-autism spectrum disorder-specific concerns (i.e. behaviour/temperament, developmental, medical, sensory or motor concerns). Some parents also reported on their positive and negative thoughts of a potential autism spectrum disorder diagnosis and what the diagnosis would mean to them. The most reported parental concerns before an assessment were speech and language, social and behavioural. To understand the types of concerns parents have once they seek medical help, further research into how families speculated a possible autism spectrum disorder is recommended.