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Study Defines Brookes Publishing Co.’s CSBS DP™ Infant–Toddler Checklist as Tool that May Help Predict Autism in Babies
The Journal of Pediatrics publishes study on early detection of autism in babies as young as 12 months
Baltimore, MD—A new study, published by The Journal of Pediatrics, has concluded that Brookes Publishing Co.’s Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile™ (CSBS DP™) Infant–Toddler Checklist shows promise as a screener that can identify babies in need of further testing for autism spectrum disorders, language delay, and developmental delay. The study, “Detecting, Studying, and Treating Autism Early: The One-Year Well-Baby Check-Up Approach,” was conducted by scholars at the University of California, San Diego. The checklist and its accompanying CSBS DP™ are based upon the works of authors Amy M. Wetherby, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, & Barry M. Prizant, Ph.D., CCC-SLP.
CSBS DP Infant-Toddler ChecklistThe CSBS DP™ Infant–Toddler Checklist provides a simple questionnaire that can be completed in as little as five minutes and focuses on seven important areas of infant development: emotion and eye gaze, communication, gestures, sounds, words, understanding, and object use. The test should be administered by a certified speech-language pathologist, early interventionist, psychologist, pediatrician, or other professional trained to assess development in young children. The results of the test reveal what percentile a child’s development is in and identify which areas may be developing at a rate below the norm.
While serious health or physical impairments are usually the first warning signs of developmental delays, a delay in language development may be the first symptom that a child is not developing on par with peers. Most children say their first words between 12 and 15 months, but it can be common practice to wait until a child is not talking at 18 to 24 months before referring the child for an evaluation. Research over the past two decades has identified a collection of predictors of later language development that promise earlier and more accurate identification. This research demonstrates that children delayed only in the use of words are very likely to catch up on their own, while children who are also delayed in several or many other predictors are likely to have persisting problems. Instead of waiting for children to start using words, evaluating these language predictors is a promising solution to improve early identification—and ultimately the developmental outcomes of children.
The CSBS DP™ Infant–Toddler Checklist is part of the larger assessment, Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile™ (CSBS DP™”), an easy-to-use, norm-referenced screening and evaluation tool that helps determine the communicative competence (use of eye gaze, gestures, sounds, words, understanding, and play) of children with a functional communication age between 6 months and 24 months (chronological age from about 6 months to 6 years).
Click here for more information about The Infant-Toddler Checklist, the CSBS DP, or to download the checklist for free.
About the Authors:
Amy M. Wetherby, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Laurel Schendel Professor, Department of Communication Disorders, and Executive Director, Center for Autism and Related Disabilities, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida.
Amy M. Wetherby has more than 20 years of clinical experience and is a Fellow of the American Speech–Language–Hearing Association (ASHA). Dr. Wetherby has published extensively and presents regularly at national conventions on social and communicative profiles of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and early identification of communication disorders in infants and toddlers. She served on the National Academy of Sciences Committee for Educational Interventions for Children with Autism.
Dr. Wetherby is the Project Director of the FIRST WORDS Project (http://firstwords.fsu.edu), which is funded by a U.S. Department of Education Field-Initiated Research Grant on improving early identification of young children at risk for ASD, a Model Demonstration Grant on early intervention for very young children with ASD and their families, and a Doctoral Leadership Training Grant specializing in autism.
Barry M. Prizant, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Director, Childhood Communication Services; Adjunct Professor, Center for the Study of Human Development, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Barry M. Prizant has more than 30 years of experience as a clinical scholar, researcher, and consultant to young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and related communication and developmental disabilities and their families. Dr. Prizant has published more than 90 articles and chapters on ASD and pediatric communication disabilities, serves on the advisory board of six professional journals, and has presented more than 500 seminars and numerous keynote addresses at national and international conferences. Dr. Prizant also served on the Committee on Screening and Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders at the National Institutes of Health and co-authored the Practice Parameters published by the committee.
Dr. Prizant is a Fellow of the American Speech–Language–Hearing Association (ASHA) and has received numerous awards as well as widespread recognition for his clinical and scholarly work.
About Brookes Publishing:
For more than 30 years, Brookes Publishing has been a leading provider of professional resources and assessments in autism, disabilities, early childhood, literacy, and special education. Brookes Publishing is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. For more information, please visit www.brookespublishing.com.
