Autism

Our research on autism has particularly focused on the economic costs of autism - treatment, care and support - to provide economic evidence to support greater investment in support for autistic people. We carry out economic evaluations as part of larger studies evaluating or developing new support interventions.

Key findings

There is a critical need to fund autism research
The cost of autism in the UK is £32 billion per year in treatment, lost earnings, care and support for children and adults with autism

Current studies

The ASDEU programme is studying the prevalence of autism in 12 countries, analysing the economic and social costs of autism, reviewing existing arrangements and developing proposals for early detection programmes with the aim of improving care and support for adults with autism.

The IAMHealth study is focusing on decreasing mental health problems as a strategy for improving outcomes for people with autism spectrum disorders and their families.

The SenITA study is exploring whether, compared to treatment normally offered to families ('usual care'), sensory integration therapy can help with behaviour and daily functioning for children between 4 and 11 years old who have adult spectrum disorders and sensory processing difficulties and are in mainstream education.

The SHAPE study is evaluating specialist autism teams, and investigating their role in supporting autism-specialist practice in mainstream services. LSE is leading on the economic evaluation for the study.

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Autism

Key findings

Current studies

ASDEU: Autism spectrum disorders in Europe

IAMHealth: Improving outcomes for people with autism spectrum disorders by reducing mental health problems

SenITA: A pragmatic randomised controlled trial of sensory integration therapy versus usual care for sensory processing difficulties in autism spectrum disorders in children

SHAPE: Mapping and evaluating specialist autism team service models