Does Race Make a Difference in Autism? (Premium)

Black and Hispanic children with autism appear to be more likely to regress than white children.

Some children with autism appear to be developing normally when they are very young. They babble or even talk, make eye contact with their parents, and crawl and walk on schedule. Then suddenly, these skills seem to vanish.

Described as developmental regression, this loss of language, motor or social skills occurs more often in black and Hispanic children compared to white children, according to a study to be presented Tuesday, May 6, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.