Update information June 2021: NICE added new recommendations in the section on interventions for coexisting problems, to highlight the need for assessment and referral for children and young people with feeding problems and restricted diets. NICE also changed "children and young people with autism" to "autistic children and young people", and "symptoms of autism" to "features of autism" to align with current terminology. For the current recommendations, see https:// www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg170/chapter/1- Recommendations
Autism
NICE Clinical Guidelines, No. 170
Authors
National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health (UK).Excerpt
This guideline has been developed to advise on the management and support of children and young people on the autism spectrum. The guideline recommendations have been developed by a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals, children and young people with autism, their carers and guideline methodologists after careful consideration of the best available evidence. It is intended that the guideline will be useful to clinicians and service commissioners in providing and planning high-quality care for children and young people with autism while also emphasising the importance of the experience of care for children and young people with autism and their carers.
Although the evidence base is rapidly expanding, there are a number of major gaps. The guideline makes a number of research recommendations specifically to address gaps in the evidence base. In the meantime, it is hoped that the guideline will assist clinicians, and children and young people with autism and their carers, by identifying the merits of particular treatment approaches where the evidence from research and clinical experience exists.