>>> ALL RIGHT. WELCOME BACK, EVERYONE. DR. JEN IS IN LOS ANGELES WITH OUR MEDICAL TALK. >> WE'RE TALKING AUTISM RATES. ACCORDING TO A NEW STUDY, RATES HAVE TRIPLED. HAS IT REALLY GOTTEN MORE COMMON, OR ARE WE JUST BETTER AT DIAGNOSING IT? >> THAT'S THE REAL QUESTION THAT YOU SHOULD ALWAYS ASK WHEN YOU HEAR A MEDICAL HEADLINE LIKE THIS. THIS IS THE ACTUAL REPORT, YOU GUYS, RIGHT HERE, JUST PUBLISHED IN "THE JOURNAL: PEDIATRICS." AND IT LOOKS AT AUTISM RATES AND NEW JERSEY AMONGST ABOUT 4,500 8-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN OVER A 16-YEAR PERIOD OF TIME. THEY FOUND THE RATES OF CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER LARGELY WITHOUT INTELLECTUAL IMPAIRMENT HAVE TRIPLED. WHEN YOU HEAR A HEADLINE LIKE THAT, IT BEGS THE QUESTION, AS YOU SAID, WHY? I THINK THERE ARE A NUMBER OF REASONS. WE'RE MUCH BETTER AT DIAGNOSING AUTISM IN THIS POPULATION. WE'RE REPORTING CASES MORE, WHICH IS IMPORTANT. THE CRITERIA FOR DIAGNOSIS HAS BROADENED. AND REMEMBER, THIS IS A SPECTRUM DISORDER, SO THERE CAN BE MILD CASES. THERE CAN BE SEVERE CASES. AND IN SOME CASES, THE DIAGNOSTIC CRITERIA THEMSELVES HAVE CHANGED. ACCORDING TO THE CDC, 1 IN 44 CHILDREN MEET THIS DIAGNOSIS. AND THE KEY IS EARLY INTERVENTION BECAUSE IT CAN ABSOLUTELY IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE AND OUTCOMES IN MANY CASES. >> SO, DR. JEN, VACCINES HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT? >> YOU KNOW, YOU GUYS, I CANNOT EMPHASIZE THAT ENOUGH. EVEN IF YOU LOOK AT AUTISM SPEAKS, THAT MYTH HAS BEEN DEBUNKED. RIGHT NOW IN THE MEDICAL AND SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT CAUSES AUTISM, BUT WE DO KNOW IF THERE WAS A CONCLUSIVE CAUSALITY BETWEEN