Diabetic and Hypertension, Osteoborosis, Autism, or Obesity - Essay Example

Autism Spectrum Disorders College: Autism Spectrum Disorders Autism is a complex brain disorder that manifests through abnormal behavior patterns that are collectively termed as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Statistics dating back since the 1990s show that the number of patients suffering from ASD have increased, becoming an alarm within the United States. This trend has prompted many medical organizations to venture into research to reveal the cause of the prevalence of autism disorders and the possible remedies that can be instituted to curb this disaster.

The center for disease control and prevention is among the organizations that have launched operations to monitor the prevalence of ASD within the US public domain. In 2008, CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) network set out to investigate the spread of ASD within the US. The ADDM had numerous goals that they intended to accomplish through this research. First, the network intended to provide an accurate count of the number of children that suffered from ASD within the sample sites.

Secondly, it was their intention to provide a comparative study on the prevalence of the disease within the chosen sites and to identify any changes within the research time framework. Lastly, ADDM intended to study the prevalence of the disorders within various groups of children in the public sector (Baio, 2012). To achieve these goals, ADDM network conducted a mixed study approach to collect, organize and analyze from the sample population. The findings indicated that there was a higher prevalence of ASD in 2008 than any other year in the US.

Between 2002 and 2008, statistics indicate that there was a 78% increase in the number of ASD disorders recorded within the 13 sample sites in the US. There was a 70% increase of ASD within the non-Hispanic white children and 91% within the black non-Hispanic children living within the 13 sites covered by the CDC monitoring network. The Hispanic children had the highest level of infection recording a 110% increase within a period of 6 years. The reported cases indicate that the number of children with both mild disorders and severe disorders had increased considerably within the period of the study.

Particularly, the number of children reduced intellectual abilities had increased indicating severe consequences of the disease (Baio, 2012). According to Baio (2012), it is clear that Autism is becoming an alarming threat to the health of the US public. The spectrum of the disorder seems to be expanding, especially within specific vulnerable groups of people in the US society. Children within the age of 8 years are more severely affected than any other age group. A keen observation of the statistics provided by the ADDM network survey shows that the male children are more vulnerable than the female ones.

This prevalence indicates that gender is one of the predisposing factors of Autism as more males get affected compared to the opposite gender. In reality, the risk of boys’ infection is about 4 or 5 times higher than that of the girl child. Notably, there are specific groups of American social groups that are more affected than others. Although both the Hispanic and non-Hispanic children are affected, it is clear that the rate of ASD prevalence within the Hispanic population is more than in any other group within the society.

Baio (2012) associates these kinds of trends with the irregular distribution of resources within the country. The Hispanic children have poor access to health facilities at their young age, which makes the conditions severe within this group in the United States. The findings of this report correspond to the analysis provided by the National institute of Mental health (NIMH, 2013) that identified this group as one of the severely affected within the US public health sector. In conclusion, Autism in the United States is sending a warning signal to the health sector as health unit's record more cases of ASD within a period of less than 6 years.

The disease manifests as mild social and communication impairment as well as severe mental related disabilities. CDC is one of the health organizations that have delved in a comprehensive research to identify the prevalence of the disease within the US public domain. The ADDM research that extended between 2002 and 2008 revealed that there was over 70% increase in the number of cases of ASD reported within 14 health organizations. The male children under the age of 8 years were more exposed to the disease than their female counterparts.

Moreover, the ASD prevalence was more severe within the Hispanic children that the non-Hispanic ones, a situation that can be associated with poor health facilities access among this social group. Just like other researchers, the ADDM network suggests that there is the need to provide more health facilities to the disadvantaged groups in the US to reduce the cases of ASD. References Baio, J. (2012). Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders: Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 14 Sites, United States, 2008.

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Surveillance Summaries, 61(3). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Institute of Mental Health, (2013). Autism Spectrum Disorder. Retrieved from: < http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/autism-spectrum-disorders-pervasive-developmental-disorders/index.shtml>