Validity of the social communication questionnaire in assessing risk of autism in preschool children with...

Area of Science:

• Developmental Pediatrics
• Child Psychology
• Autism Spectrum Disorder Research

Background:

• Early identification of autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) in high-risk preschool children is crucial for timely intervention.
• The Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) is a widely used screening tool, but its diagnostic accuracy in specific populations requires further validation.
• Referral accuracy by non-specialists can vary, necessitating reliable screening instruments for tertiary care settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of the SCQ for detecting ASD in preschool children at high risk.
• To compare the predictive accuracy of the SCQ with the assessments made by referring clinicians.
• To determine the utility of the SCQ in assisting tertiary centers with the selection of children for autism-specific evaluations.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study involving 81 parents of high-risk preschool children referred to a tertiary center.
• Administration of the SCQ to parents prior to a comprehensive multidisciplinary assessment.
• Comparison of SCQ results and referrer predictions against the final clinical diagnosis of ASD.

Main Results:

• The SCQ demonstrated high sensitivity (93% for ages 2-6, 100% for ages 3-5) and moderate specificity (58% for ages 2-6, 62% for ages 3-5) with a cut-off score of 11.
• The SCQ's predictive performance surpassed that of the referring clinicians.
• A low specificity indicates the SCQ is not suitable for definitive diagnosis but is valuable for screening.

Conclusions:

• The SCQ is a sensitive tool for screening autistic spectrum disorders in at-risk preschool populations.
• The SCQ assists tertiary services in identifying children who warrant specialized autism assessments.
• While not a standalone diagnostic instrument, the SCQ improves the efficiency of selecting children for further evaluation.