Cause of Autism still unclear

The diagnosis rates of autism are alarming. Those numbers have been increasing and do not seem to be slowing down. According to the CDC, 1 in every 150 born is autistic. Those numbers are substantially higher than they used to be. There are several speculative reasons behind autism. One cause for the rise was the use of thimerosal in vaccines for infants and young children.

However, studies are presenting conflicting results. According to an older article in the Medical News Today:

An article in the March 10, 2006 issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons shows that since mercury was removed from childhood vaccines, the alarming increase in reported rates of autism and other neurological disorders (NDs) in children not only stopped, but actually dropped sharply - by as much as 35%.

More recently, this article was posted on The Autism Bulletin Blogspot:

California public health researchers have found that the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders in young children has risen, even after doctors stopped using a mercury-containing preservative thimerosal in the vaccines babies receive.

The study, "Continuing Increases in Autism Reported to California Developmental Services System," is published in the January 2008 issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

The Wall Street Journal also describes these unfortunate results here.

The bottom line is, the rates are still rising! From the most recent studies, the rates do not seem to be affected by the use of thimerosal as once thought. Either way you look at it, we need to find the best possible ways of treatments and educating these children while we discover the causes. We need to deal with this problem, and deal with it now. These children have every right to a decent education. Not every school is capable of giving them the attention, tools, and care they need to succeed. The parents should have the right to remove them from those schools and transfer them to schools that can and will meet their needs.

It is not a problem that seems to be going away, so we need to do what is right for them now.