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Early diagnosis of developmental disorders is the goal of VTC partnership research

Angela Scarpa, associate professor of psychology at Virginia Tech, became suddenly interested in autism five years ago when her 23-month-old son was diagnosed with the disorder. "I was shocked at the diagnosis," she admits.

"I did what I could to learn more. At one conference, another parent said to me, 'You are lucky your son was diagnosed so young because you can begin to receive services.' "

She has learned that prognosis is improved by intervention that begins before 3 to 5 years of age. "It has become my mission to help people get diagnosis and services early," Scarpa says.

To this end, Scarpa became interested in a brief survey parents can take to help professionals diagnose developmental problems in very young children. "Then I learned about the Virginia Tech Carilion partnership. People from Carilion called on the psychology department at Virginia Tech and asked what kind of partnerships we can have. When I told them of my interest, one of the docs put me in touch with Dr. (Varsha) Desai," section chief at the Carilion Pediatric Clinic.

The Virginia Tech and Carilion researchers are now conducting a screening study for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) of all toddlers being seen for their 18-month or 24-month well visits at the Carilion Pediatric Clinic, which the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends should be a standard practice.

"If the screening test indicates a child may have ASD, we seek the parents' consent to put the child in the research project," Scarpa explains.

Once a child becomes part of the research project, Scarpa and Dr. Kathryn Kerkering's team at the Carilion Pediatric Neuro-Developmental Clinic will do further diagnostic assessment to confirm or rule out autism or other developmental problems.

The project is testing the effectiveness of the screening measure known as the Modified Checklist of Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT), a 23-item survey completed by parents. The parent's Evaluation of Developmental Disorders (PEDS) will also be given to see if it improves the ability to detect ASD or another developmental delay. Also, a Spanish-language survey and evaluation is being used with Spanish-speaking parents, the first time that has ever been tested with this instrument.

The Carilion Research Acceleration Project funded the study and testing began in November 2008. This study will wrap up at the end of August 2009. "But we are collecting pilot data for a larger project on implementing screening as the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends."

She encourages Carilion School of Medicine students to contact her when they are ready to begin the research phase of their education. "There will be other opportunities and I'm happy to help," says Scarpa, director of the Virginia Tech Autism Clinic.