Dr. Landa noted that patterns of slowing, plateauing and decline in development in children with ASD occurred within the timeframe when parents report first concerns about children with ASD. The subtlety of early signs and a gradual shift from typical development may not be detected by ASD screeners or by health professionals in a brief office visit. Thus, parent's expression of concern about their toddler's development or behavior requires careful consideration.

"If parents aren't seeing their children steadily develop new skills, they should talk to their pediatrician or contact their local early intervention program," says Dr. Landa. "Results from this study show that communication delays are often present in the second year of life in children with autism, especially involving language comprehension."

Further research is needed with a larger population of children with ASD and using behavioral and biological measures that may detect more subtle indicators of disrupted development in children with ASD in the first year of life. With larger studies, researchers can conduct more detailed analyses of developmental advances in children with ASD, which may facilitate the development of better early ASD screening tools and thereby improving access to earlier intervention. Studies have shown that early intervention improves language, social and cognitive outcomes for children with ASD.

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