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New CDC data suggests that autism rates in the United States have risen significantly over the last 20 years, largely due to improved evaluation and identification practices, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from Georgia, Illinois, and Maryland.
- Georgia: According to new CDC report, around one in 31 children in the United States were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) by their eighth birthday in 2022. Previously, it was estimated that one in 150 children had been diagnosed with ASD in 2000, which increased to one in 54 in 2016. According to Zachary Warren, an author of the report and the executive director of the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center's Treatment and Research Institute for Autism Spectrum Disorders, the increase in ASD rates is likely due to improvements in detecting the disorder. "Without a doubt, we've become exceptionally efficient in this surveillance work," Warren said. According to the report, boys had consistently higher rates of ASD diagnosis than girls, with a 3.4-fold difference in rates among eight-year-olds. ASD diagnoses were also more common among Asian, Black, and Hispanic children than white children, which the researchers said was "consistent with increased access to and provision of identification services among previously underserved groups." Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently announced that HHS was launching a "massive testing and research effort" to determine the cause of rising autism rates by September. However, some experts were skeptical about the short timeline and expressed concerns about whether the effort would try to promote the debunked theory that vaccines cause autism. (George, MedPage Today, 4/16; McPhillips, CNN, 4/15; Edwards, NBC News, 4/15)
- Illinois: According to a new study from Northwestern Medicine, researchers have identified a new set of genes that contribute to the risk of Parkinson's disease — findings that could help explore new ways to treat the disease. Using CRISPR technology, the researchers discovered a group of 16 proteins called Commander. The Commander genes help deliver specific proteins to the lysosome, a part of the cell that breaks down waste materials. After examining the genomes from two independent cohorts (the UK Biobank and AMP-PD), the researchers found that people with Parkinson's had loss-of-function variants in their Commander genes while those without the disease did not. "Our study reveals that a combination of genetic factors plays a role in the manifestation of diseases like Parkinson's disease, which means that therapeutic targeting of several key pathways will have to be considered for such disorders," said Dimitri Krainc, director of the Feinberg Neuroscience Institute at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and the study's corresponding author. (Science Daily, 4/11)
- Maryland: FDA has cleared CardioVia's ViaOne system to help providers access the surface of the heart for diagnostic and therapeutic services without the use of an exposed needle. Without the need for a sharp needle, the device reduces the risk of heart perforation, a well-known complication associated with current percutaneous techniques. Previously, ViaOne had received a breakthrough device designation from FDA. "This FDA clearance represents a pivotal milestone in our mission to redefine how cardiac interventions are performed," said Ziv Menshes, CEO of CardioVia. "ViaOne is not just a product — it's a platform that opens the door to a new era of heart-surface therapies, improving safety and outcomes for patients worldwide." (Murphy, Becker's Hospital Review, 4/10; PR Newswire, 4/8)
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