NGO Sangath to conduct study on autism

NGO Sangath to conduct study on autism

PANAJI: The non-governmental organisation Sangath will conduct a study on autism spectrum disorders (ASD) among children in India, as part of
Autism Research and Training Initiative (ARTI) project in collaboration with Jyot, a Goa based support group for families affected by the disorder.

"Studies in the US, where most work has been done, suggest that up to 1 in 150 children have this disorder. However, there is no reliable data on ASD in India, nor are there any tools to help community health workers identify children with these disorders," said Gauri Divan from Sangath. "As a result, ASD remains a little understood condition in the country," she added.

ASD affects the development of language and communication, social interaction and restricts interests. While development of language and communication deals with the way a child learns vocabulary and describes his needs, social interaction deals with how a child interacts with others and restricted interests means the limited activities that a child is interested in.

Sangath is one of three south Asian organizations to have been awarded grants by the US based NGO Autism Speaks to launch a research program to improve the understanding of ASD in the region.

The ARTI project was launched recently and a two-day meeting was held with the stake-holders in Goa on Thursday, wherein it was agreed to strengthen regional collaboration to improve the understanding of ASD.

12 Apr 2009, The Times of India, Goa edition