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AUTISM BIOMEDICAL TREATMENT - TYPICAL COSTS
Typically, it works out to about S$350 per month, plus an initial expenditure of about S$1,200 for a series of biomedical tests. This is very much lower than in the United States, where the initial tests alone will come up to about US$2,000 or more.
These are very approximate figures and the actual cost will, of course, depend on the condition of the individual as well as on how much the family wishes to / can afford to spend.
The cost of autism biomedical treatment consists of several components:
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Biomedical tests
These are helpful but not absolutely necessary. During the initial consultation, various tests are ordered to determine, for example, the extent to which the autistic individual suffers from heavy metal toxicity, yeast infection, food sensitivity, nutritional deficiency, and so on.
The entire battery of tests will cost about US$2,000.
At The Autism Clinic, we have carefully considered the various tests and decided on a few autism biomedical tests that will yield the most useful information.
Where possible, tests are sourced from local hospitals to keep costs low. However, certain highly specialised tests can only be done in the US.
In most cases, we have been able to reduce the cost of testing for autism biomedical treatment to about S$1,200. Families who do want to do more comprehensive testing may, of course, do so.
Yet there are also others who simply cannot afford the tests. In such cases, we may forgo the tests and base the treatment on clinical symptoms and experience.
The tests are helpful in that they give a more accurate picture of the conditon of the person. Without testing, autism biomedical treatment based on the practitioner's wealth of experience can also yield highly positive results.
- Nutritional supplements
Depending on needs, an individual on autism biomedical treatment may be prescribed a range of nutritional supplements that may include antioxidants, digestive support, essential fatty acids, multi-vitamin and minerals, probiotics, and so on.
Often, very high quality and high potency supplements are needed in order to attain positive results within a relatively short time. Some of these supplements will therefore cost more than the average supplements bought from pharmacies and health stores.
On average, most patients spend about S$200 a month on specially selected professional potency supplements that are often not available in general vitamin shops. - On going consultation / tests
Consultations are usually done bi-monthly and some tests may be required every six months or so. These may add another $150 per month on average.
That’s a total of $350 per month. There is probably no other privately offered autism treatment programme that costs lower!
- Heavy metal detox
For kids who need heavy metals detoxification as part of their autism biomedical treatment, the medication costs about $180 per month for a 20kg child. There is also a basic blood test costing $180, to be done every 3 months.
The average monthly cost for heavy metal detox is thus about $240.
So for such a child, the total monthly cost of autism biomedical treatment would be about $590. While this is quite a sum to spend, it is still affordable by many families.
- CFGF (casein free / gluten free) Diet
It is difficult to estimate the cost for special diets like the CFGF diet, which avoids dairy products as well as foods containing gluten, such as wheat.
If there are financial constrains, the CFGF food can be prepared from the home kitchen with very little additional cost to the family budget.
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One reason why some people get the impression that autism biomedical treatment is costly is that supplements and medication are often purchased for 2 or 3 months at a time, and tests are run on a 3 to 6 monthly basis.
Each payment can thus amount to several hundreds of dollars.
But when these payments are evened out on a monthly basis, autism biomedical treatment is actually very affordable compared with other forms of autism treatment.
One challenge with the biomedical approach to autism is that responsibility for carrying out the programme rests largely with the family.
In conventional autism therapy, the child is left in the hands of a professional therapist who implements the treatment programme. Perhaps this suits some people better.
A holistic approach to autism treatment, however, should include both autism biomedical treatment and behavioural therapy.
We call this the hardware (biomedical) and the software (behavioral) approach.
Many of the more than 1000 cases of recovery documented by the US based Autism Research Institute have used both approaches simultaneously.
As the brain gets hard wired (through the biomedical approach), it is hoped that a child may not need as much behavioral therapy to achieve permanent generalisation of skills.
Over time, as the condition of a child improves, the total cost of treatment - both autism biomedical treatment and behavioural therapy – will be reduced.