April is Autism Awareness Month

 April is Autism Awareness Month! This month provides us with a good opportunity to review some important facts about autism, and to understand how autism can impact us in our daily lives in our communities.  Autism prevalence is now one in every 88 children in the United States. This is a tenfold increase in prevalence over the past 40 years!

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is nearly four times more common in boys than girls. It is estimated that 1 in 54 boys and 1 in 252 girls are diagnosed with autism in the United States. This means that more children are affected by autism than with Down syndrome, AIDS, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, diabetes and cerebral palsy combined.  Nearly 2 million children in the U.S. and likely tens of millions worldwide are affected by an ASD.  (http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertglatter/2012/04/23/april-is-autism-awareness-month) 

Autism spectrum disorders are a group of biologically based neurodevelopmental disorders that affect a child’s behavior and social and communication skills. These disorders can typically be seen before the age of three. For most children, these conditions are chronic and require lifelong management. (Rosenblatt, A. & Carbone, P. Eds. Autism Spectrum Disorders: What Every Parent Needs to Know, American Academy of Pediatrics, 2013)

Sinergia’s Autism Initiative provides parents of a child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with educational and informational workshops as well as support.  We provide outreach to New York City’s underserved and Latino parents of children with autism who need information, awareness, and the opportunity to participate in a support group that addresses the specific needs of Spanish speaking families.  

For more information about the services provided through this initiative, please contact Dr. Bernice Moro at bmoro@sinergiany.org.