Prevalence of Pediatric Autism Spectrum Disorder in Korea Using National Statistics Including the COVID-19 Pandemic, 2011 to 2021

Abstract

Purpose: Regularly analyzing the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is im-portant to inform policies and strategies for proper management. The present study aimed to estimate trends in ASD prevalence according to age and time in Korean chil-dren.Methods: We monitored the annual prevalence of ASD in children aged 2 to 18 years based on information from Statistics Korea and the Korean National Health Insurance Service. We estimated changes in prevalence between 2011 and 2021 after stratifying participants into three age groups. Furthermore, we analyzed the prevalence of ASD by birth year. Results: The highest level of prevalence appeared in children aged 6 years, and thereaf-ter, it declined with age. The prevalence of ASD in children aged 2 to 18 years in-creased from 0.05% in 2011 to 0.12% in 2021. During the same time, the prevalence in preschool children (2 to 5 years) remarkably increased from 0.04% in 2011 to 0.12% in 2021, while the prevalence in adolescents (13 to 18 years) increased from 0.05% in 2011 to 0.09% in 2021. The prevalence of ASD notably increased during the coronavirus dis-ease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic (2020 to 2021). Among children born between 2011 and 2015, the prevalence of ASD was higher for children with recent birth years, espe-cially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: The overall ASD prevalence in children and adolescents in Korea seems to be increasing, especially in preschool children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Early and more effective interventions are necessary for Korean children.