Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2018 Apr;39(3):183-191.
doi: 10.1097/DBP.0000000000000543.

Preliminary Evaluation of a Brief Autism Screener for Young Children

Walter Zahorodny  1 , Josephine Shenouda  1 , Uday Mehta  2 , Emily Yee  3 , Patricia Garcia  4 , Mangala Rajan  5 , Madeleine Goldfarb  6
Affiliations

Preliminary Evaluation of a Brief Autism Screener for Young Children

Walter Zahorodny et al. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2018 Apr.

Abstract

Objective: Our objective was to assess the operating characteristics of the Psychological Development Questionnaire-1 (PDQ-1), an autism screener for use with young children.

Methods: In Phase 1, we evaluated the concordance of the PDQ-1 with established autism scales, determined test-retest reliability, and identified a risk threshold score. In Phase 2, a population of 1959 toddler-age children was prospectively screened through multiple pediatric practices in a diverse metropolitan region, using the new instrument. Screen-positive children were referred for diagnostic evaluation. Screened children received follow-up at age 4 years to identify autism cases missed by screening and to specify the scale's psychometric properties.

Results: By screening a diverse population of low risk children, age 18 to 36 months, with the PDQ-1, we detected individuals with autism who had not come to professional attention. Overall, the PDQ-1 showed a positive predictive value (PPV) of 88%, with a sensitivity of 85% and specificity of 99% in a low risk population. High specificity, good sensitivity, and PPV were observed across the 18 to 36 month age-range.

Conclusion: The findings provide preliminary empirical support for this parent report-based indicator of toddler psychological development and suggest that the PDQ-1 may be a useful supplement to developmental surveillance of autism. Additional research is needed with high risk samples and large, unselected populations under real-world conditions.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
The Phase 1 pilot study established the PDQ-1 cutoff score and test/re-test reliability. Flow chart of subjects of the Psychological Development Questionnaire-1 (PDQ-1) pilot study. ABC, Autism Behavior Checklist; ADI-R, Autism Diagnostic Interview, Revised; ASD, autism spectrum disorder; DD, developmental delay.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Flow chart of subjects of the Psychological Development Questionnaire-1 (PDQ-1) screening project. ADI-R, Autism Diagnostic Interview, Revised; ASD, autism spectrum disorder.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

    1. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.
    1. Christensen DL, Baio J, Braun KV, et al. Prevalence and characteristics of autism spectrum disorder among children aged 8 years—Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 11 sites, United States, 2012. MMWR Surveill Summ. 2016;65:1–23. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Van Naarden Braun K, Christensen D, Doernberg N, et al. Trends in the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, intellectual disability, and vision impairment, metropolitan atlanta, 1991–2010. PLoS One. 2015;10:e0124120. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zwaigenbaum L, Bryson S, Lord C, et al. Clinical assessment and management of toddlers with suspected autism spectrum disorder: insights from studies of high-risk infants. Pediatrics. 2009;123:1383–1391. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zuckerman KE, Lindly OJ, Sinche BK. Parental concerns, provider response, and timeliness of autism spectrum disorder diagnosis. J Pediatr. 2015;166:1431–1439.e1. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types