Sociodemographic, clinical characteristics, and service utilization of young children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at a research center in Saudi Arabia: The road to autism spectrum disorder diagnosis.

Objectives: To assess how clinical services are accessed and utilized by young children with suspected autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and identifying factors that prevent the early identification of developmental concerns and diagnosis.

Methods: This retrospective study examined the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of a convenience sample of children diagnosed with ASD at the Center for Autism Research, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia between 2016 and 2018. The characteristics of ASD assessment and intervention service use were examined.