EU survey to go ahead on autism levels

A major survey on autism is to be carried out across European Union member states to see if the condition is reaching epidemic levels, it emerged today.

Disability rights campaigner Kathy Sinnott said the European Autism Information System (EAIS) project, which has €480,000 in EU Commission funding, will discover how common the condition is.

The MEP, whose son Jaime suffers from autism, believes there is no reliable data available to determine the incidence of the disorder, which experts say is on the increase.

Ms Sinnott said: “Research in the US has shown that autism levels have risen from four cases in every 10,000 children to an alarming 30 to 60 per 10,000 children, which would officially classify it as an epidemic.

“This EU research project is a giant step forward in the search to find out, once and for all, just how prevalent autism disorders are in Irish and neighbouring EU communities.

“This is vitally important because early detection can increase the effectiveness of treatment improving the quality of life of children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder.”

The MEP launched the project in Dublin today with several autism specialists.

The European Commission has committed €480,000 to the survey but the cost is expected to run higher.

Experts believe that early diagnosis of autism is vital in helping a child to develop and learn new skills by placing the child in an intensive and structured educational programme by the age of two or three.

A central aim of the project is to have an agreed information system to record data on autism and a specific database is being developed by the National Centre on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities in Atlanta, USA.

The EAIS project will also create a network as a forum to advance the communication and co-ordination of professional expertise in the EU by bringing key experts together.

Ms Sinnott continued: “Until we understand what we are dealing with, we will never come up with the answers in treating autism.”

A founder of the EAIS research project, Ms Sinnott is also active in the Hope Project in Ireland, which assists the parents of children with autism.

The leader of the EAIS project is Dr Alvaro Ramirez from the Hope Project at Chiren Therapy Centre, Ogonnelloe, Co Clare.

Specialists from Cork, London, Prague, Copenhagen, Madrid and Verona will assist with the project.

Ms Sinnott is a member of the European Parliamentary Committee on Public Health and a vice-president of the Parliamentary Intergroup on Disability.

She said there was a severe shortage in Ireland of therapists working with people with autism and that there is currently no specialised medical treatment publicly available in the country.