Public Health Action: Beginning with surveillance year 2016, the DSM-5

case definition will serve as the basis for ADDM estimates of ASD
prevalence in future surveillance reports. Although the DSM-IV-TR case
definition will eventually be phased out, it will be applied in a limited
geographic area to offer additional data for comparison. Future analyses
will examine trends in the continued use of DSM-IV-TR diagnoses, such as
autistic disorder, PDD-NOS, and Asperger disorder in health and education
records, documentation of symptoms consistent with DSM-5 terminology,
and how these trends might influence estimates of ASD prevalence over
time. The latest findings from the ADDM Network provide evidence that
the prevalence of ASD is higher than previously reported estimates and
continues to vary among certain racial/ethnic groups and communities.
With prevalence of ASD ranging from 13.1 to 29.3 per 1,000 children aged
8 years in different communities throughout the United States, the need
for behavioral, educational, residential, and occupational services remains
high, as does the need for increased research on both genetic and
nongenetic risk factors for ASD.