|
AUTISM cases have risen 10-fold in the past decade
and policy-makers admit that Wales is unprepared to deal with the
increase.
A new National Assembly all-party committee on
autism says the increase in numbers suffering from the disease has left
health and education services struggling to cope.
Today doctors' leaders will call for research to
ascertain the reasons for the increase, which some campaigners blame on
the controversial MMR vaccine.
Although reliable figures on autism cases are
difficult to ascertain because no central register of each individual
sufferer is kept, the Medical Research Council says there are 10 times
as many cases as there were a decade ago.
The Assembly committee puts the figure at more than
27,000 sufferers of autism spectrum disorder.
Assembly Member Dr Dai Lloyd, who chairs the
committee, says the rise in autism cases is one of the biggest
challenges facing policy-makers.
"People are much more prepared to make the
diagnosis," he said.
"The diagnosis is quite common but the resources
are not there. We need specialist clinics and consultants, but there is
no capacity."
Dr Lloyd said the lack of reliable information on
the numbers of autism sufferers was a serious problem.
"We need more research," he said. "One of the
problems is you get diagnosed in the health service but treated in the
education service. You then get a situation where education authorities
say there are about 40 cases in their area but the health service says
there are 2,000 cases."
Dr Lloyd said a central register of sufferers would
be useful.
He claimed the debate on the triple measles, mumps
and rubella vaccine and its possible links to the rise in autism was
sterile and the real question was how to deal with the disease.
His call for more research will be echoed this week
by doctors from Powys who will be attending the British Medical
Association's annual conference.
Powys consultant Dr Bernard Charnley, who will be
proposing a motion that current research is inadequate, says stories
about links with MMR are clouding the issue.
"In the public's mind there is no doubt MMR and
autism seem to share headlines," he said.
"I think there's a lack of awareness of the needs
of autistic people. They need considerable resources putting into the
system.
"GPs and other doctors get contacted by people
concerned about MMR and autism and we need to know what the reason is
for the increase in cases."
Families who claim their children have developed
autism after having the triple vaccine say that any new research which
disregards a possible link between the two will be useless.
Julie Loch, of Newport, whose five-year-old son
Oliver has autism which she blames on the vaccine, said, "In part, the
MMR vaccine does account for the increase.
"I think in order to resolve the issue the
Government should commission an independent inquiry into autism and
MMR."
Mrs Loch said provision of services for autistic
children was inadequate.
She and her family had to take legal action to
force the local authority to open a special autism unit in their area.
|
Printable
version
