A Comparison of the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) for the Quantitative Evaluation of Autism

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate scores generated from the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC), a parent-rated measure, and those derived from professionally completed Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) evaluations. A cohort of 56 participants diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder was used for the study, and each child was evaluated independently by the parent using the ATEC and a health care professional using the CARS. The Spearman's rank correlation statistic ρ was used to evaluate the correlation between ATEC and CARS scores. It was observed that there was a significant correlation between total ATEC and CARS scores (ρ = .71). Specific domains in the ATEC evaluation significantly correlated with CARS scores. Sensitivity, specificity, and receiver operating characteristic confirmed the association between CARS and ATEC domains. The results help to validate the utility of the parentally completed ATEC in comparison with an established, professional-related measure of autism.