Ukrainian researcher develops digital tool for detecting autism and developmental delay in kids

Cambridge University PressOct 22 2024

A Ukrainian researcher has developed a new digital tool for detecting autism and developmental delay in children. Her research has been published in Cambridge University Press journal Cambridge Prisms: Global Mental Health.

The tool incorporates the basic principles of the Kids' Development Diagnosis and Determining the Risk of Autism (KiDD) methodology, for children aged 1.5 to 6 years old, into mobile app form. It has the potential to help diagnose children more swiftly and efficiently, which could have major positive impacts as early diagnosis of autism helps in preventing lifelong impacts.

This app will also be especially useful in places where medical systems and resources are currently under strain – such as war-torn countries – and support for children with developmental needs risks being delayed or deprioritised.

Signs of autism are observable from early childhood, and the condition persists throughout life and often has an impact on behaviour, personality, and social integration. With early intervention, however, children with autism can be equipped with skills that significantly improve their quality of life and enable greater social adaptation.

Wars, epidemics, long-term quarantine, financial constraints, and the unavailability of psychological support due to remote living and the financial condition of families are some of the reasons that can lead to children being deprived of the chance to receive well-timed, qualified psychological diagnosis and assistance – and delays in diagnosis increase children's likelihood of struggling later in life.

War-torn nations – like my home country of Ukraine – are in desperate need of supporting those with development delays to prevent lifelong impacts. However, tools like this one could also help meet an urgent need in the United Kingdom and United States, where waiting lists for autism diagnoses are extremely long, with parents often waiting over 3 years for their child to receive a formal diagnosis."

Olena Iniutina, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ukraine

Iniutina ran tests according to the KiDD methodology for more than 3 years, from 2021 to 2024. Standardisation, validation, and testing were conducted on a representative sample of 199 Ukrainian children aged 18–72 months. A psychologist tested 100 children using the KiDD methodology in person, while parents tested 99 children remotely using the mobile app.

To compare the effectiveness of the KiDD methodology, all 100 participants tested by a psychologist also underwent testing using the Kiphard (18-48 months) and Zinnhuber (49-72 months) methods for general development and the M-CHAT (18-30 months) and ATEC (31-72 months) methods for determining the likelihood of a child having autism.

The ability of the KiDD test to identify the likelihood of autism is 84%. The correspondence of these test results to the diagnosis regarding overall development is 98%, and the correspondence of the test results to a child's diagnosis of autism is 73%. Due
to the late diagnosis of ASD, the percentage of children whose likelihood of autism according to the KiDD test matches the official diagnosis may be higher than 73% when the diagnosis is established.

While the app testing method is not a diagnosis and does not replace a doctor's diagnosis of autism, it can help parents explain in detail to the doctor which facets of their child's behaviour and development are atypical. Having this tool for home assessment will be especially valuable for parents unable to access a formal diagnosis, but who are seeking an indication of whether their child is autistic, and to what extent, so that they can figure out how better to support their child.

KiDD methodology also has the potential to be used by psychologists, tutors, educators, teachers, and social workers in children's hospitals, kindergartens, rehabilitation centres, and schools.