American researchers, while looking for genetic alterations connected to autism, revealed that a new and advanced gene test that looks for deleted or extra DNA in chromosomes, tends to work as much as three times better than the generally used test.

The test, they revealed, christened a chromosomal microarray analysis or CMA, should be utilized in the first ever round of screening undertaken to look for a genetic which ends up causing autism in a child.

While the standard screening tests for autism often tend to fail and not detect any genetic alterations, despite the fact that genes are the causing factor of autism in at least 15% of autism cases, the newer test is much more sensitive and accurate. It searches the whole genetic pattern to detect places where the chromosomes have been added, are missing or are in a wrong place altogether.

"What we're hoping is to provide evidence to make it harder for insurance companies to say we don't want to pay for this", said researcher Dr. David Miller of Children's Hospital Boston.

Details of the study have been published in the journal Pediatrics.