Special Needs

pedi neurologist instead of developmental pedi?

I tried to get a referral to a developmental pedi, but my insurance was not able to make it happen, does not have anything available except for a pediatric neurologist.  I just want to rule out autism and get an opinion about if there is a global developmental delay and what services are advised.  Would this be a good fit for this type of appointment?  I thought I read here once that they try to push too many tests, etc.

Re: pedi neurologist instead of developmental pedi?

  • We saw a pedi neurologist as a part of DS's testing. We also saw a speech therapist, occupational therapist, and child psychologist as part of the assessment. The appointments were scheduled over a two-month period and ended with a meeting to go over everyone's findings and opinions. The neurologist was the first person we saw and he immediately told us that he believed it was autism. This was confirmed by the assessment team.

    I would imagine that if your child does have autism that he/she could diagnose it and give you some guidance. Ours did not push any other testing but did say that he recommended genetic testing to rule out fragile x if we planned on having more children.

    image
  • Loading the player...
  • Both a neurologist and a developmental pedi can diagnose autism and global developmental delay.  A neurologist through clinical observation and behavioral history and a developmental pedi by using a standardized screening using a rating scale.  Our neurologist identified delays and referred us to Early Intervention.  After that, a dev pedi can monitor developmental progress and recommend further treatment needed.  Good luck.
  • Just looked again and saw how young your little guy is. My son was nearly 3 when we went through his assessment. Ditto Auntie's advice. I hope you get some answers soon.
    image
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"