Cargando…
Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review
This paper presents a narrative review of current knowledge on autism in Africa, including prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers. The prevalence of autism in Africa is estimated to be similar to that in other regions. However, diagn...
Autores principales: | , , |
---|---|
Formato: | Online Artículo Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
Publicado: |
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
2023
|
Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10473371/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37663716 http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/MS9.0000000000001107 |
_version_ | 1785100261171134464 |
---|---|
author | Aderinto, Nicholas Olatunji, Deji Idowu, Oluwatobi |
author_facet | Aderinto, Nicholas Olatunji, Deji Idowu, Oluwatobi |
author_sort | Aderinto, Nicholas |
collection | PubMed |
description | This paper presents a narrative review of current knowledge on autism in Africa, including prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers. The prevalence of autism in Africa is estimated to be similar to that in other regions. However, diagnosis and treatment access remain limited due to various challenges, such as a shortage of specialised healthcare professionals and resources, a lack of awareness and understanding of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among healthcare providers, and cultural stigma surrounding mental health and developmental disorders. Alternative therapies are commonly used with other therapies, but their effectiveness is often unproven. The impact of ASD on families and caregivers in Africa is significant, with many facing challenges in accessing support services and coping with stigma. Efforts are being made to increase awareness and reduce the stigma around ASD in African communities, but more research is needed on effective interventions and culturally appropriate treatments. Policy recommendations include increasing resources and training for healthcare professionals, improving access to evidence-based interventions and promoting community awareness and support. With improved understanding and investment, the quality of life of individuals with ASD in Africa can be significantly improved. |
format | Online Article Text |
id | pubmed-10473371 |
institution | National Center for Biotechnology Information |
language | English |
publishDate | 2023 |
publisher | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins |
record_format | MEDLINE/PubMed |
spelling | pubmed-104733712023-09-02 Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review Aderinto, Nicholas Olatunji, Deji Idowu, Oluwatobi Ann Med Surg (Lond) Review Articles This paper presents a narrative review of current knowledge on autism in Africa, including prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers. The prevalence of autism in Africa is estimated to be similar to that in other regions. However, diagnosis and treatment access remain limited due to various challenges, such as a shortage of specialised healthcare professionals and resources, a lack of awareness and understanding of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among healthcare providers, and cultural stigma surrounding mental health and developmental disorders. Alternative therapies are commonly used with other therapies, but their effectiveness is often unproven. The impact of ASD on families and caregivers in Africa is significant, with many facing challenges in accessing support services and coping with stigma. Efforts are being made to increase awareness and reduce the stigma around ASD in African communities, but more research is needed on effective interventions and culturally appropriate treatments. Policy recommendations include increasing resources and training for healthcare professionals, improving access to evidence-based interventions and promoting community awareness and support. With improved understanding and investment, the quality of life of individuals with ASD in Africa can be significantly improved. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 2023-07-24 /pmc/articles/PMC10473371/ /pubmed/37663716 http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/MS9.0000000000001107 Text en Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) (CCBY), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) |
spellingShingle | Review Articles Aderinto, Nicholas Olatunji, Deji Idowu, Oluwatobi Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
title | Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
title_full | Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
title_fullStr | Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
title_full_unstemmed | Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
title_short | Autism in Africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
title_sort | autism in africa: prevalence, diagnosis, treatment and the impact of social and cultural factors on families and caregivers: a review |
topic | Review Articles |
url | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10473371/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37663716 http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/MS9.0000000000001107 |
work_keys_str_mv | AT aderintonicholas autisminafricaprevalencediagnosistreatmentandtheimpactofsocialandculturalfactorsonfamiliesandcaregiversareview AT olatunjideji autisminafricaprevalencediagnosistreatmentandtheimpactofsocialandculturalfactorsonfamiliesandcaregiversareview AT idowuoluwatobi autisminafricaprevalencediagnosistreatmentandtheimpactofsocialandculturalfactorsonfamiliesandcaregiversareview |