This study aims to estimate Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) prevalence in schoolaged children in the province of Vlora and Tirana, in Albania.
It will be used to identify cases in a community of 7-9-year-old children attending elementary schools in Vlora and Tirana, Albania .
First, in this study will be collecting the number of children with a disability certificate from the Local Health Authority and an ASD diagnosis will be verified by the study referring to the DSM - V.
Second, CBLC/ 6 to 18 Achenback to identify behavioral difficulties at children at risk for ASD that will be filled in by teachers. This will serve to analyse all the emotional and behavioural problems in a large sample of subjects attending public and private schools.
Also it will be used The Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) that will be filled in by parents of children identified who will join the study and will result positive by the CBLC.
The findings of this study are expected to create information of ASD prevalence in Albania for children of 7 - 9 years old and in the future it will allow an adequate planning of interventions for the prevention and treatment of autism spectrum disorder in Albania.
The study will provide added value in getting to know the ASD reality in Albania. It will create the opportunity to It is going to set up an Albanian ASD database. This will serve all health professionals, therapists, teachers, families, individuals in Albania.
The study is going to create the real information about prevalence of ASD at children 7 - 9 years old in Albania, selected Vlora and Tirana as the two most important regions in south and center of the country. The capital of Albania, Tirana, has mix population from all races, regions from all the parts of Albania and Vlora is one of the biggest town in South. It will be difficult to have all the information from parents. Some of them don't accept the situation of their children and they will tend to avoid all external contacts about this. Maybe the study can't have the right information about the variable of race because Albania has a homogeneous population.