…the AS-ATN Center of Excellence at Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine, in Houston.
Another study by a Florida State University researcher has found that African American children tend to be diagnosed later than white children, which results in a longer and more intensive intervention.
The reasons for later diagnoses include a lack of access to quality, affordable, culturally competent healthcare, according to Martell Teasley, an associate professor in Florida State’s College of Social Work who has conducted a comprehensive review of research literature on autism and African American children. In addition, the stigma attached to mental health conditions within the black community contribute to misdiagnoses of autism and underuse of available treatment services.