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Recognizing Autism
By Jen Christensen
April 11, 2007
Autism is a type of developmental disorder that affects three main
types of behaviors: social interaction, verbal and nonverbal
communication and repetitive actions or narrow interests. Difficulty
with social interaction is one of the first, key signs of autism.
Infants may avoid eye contact or prefer not to interact with
caregivers. As the child grows, he/she may want to play alone and
resist being hugged. Children also have difficulty interpreting social
cues or gestures.
Communication problems vary. Some children have delayed language
development and others don’t speak at all. In some cases, infants have
normal language development and then suddenly stop talking. Sometimes
children with autism repeat words or phrases. For those who develop
language skills, topics of discussion are often very narrow or obscure
and conversations may be one-sided.
Repetitive behaviors may be very obvious (such as arm flapping) or
subtle. Autistic children tend to prefer sameness and consistency.
They may set their toys in a perfect line or divide items into unusual
categories. Slight changes in the normal routine can be very
distressing.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now says autism affects
one out of every 150 American children. The condition is three to five
times more common in boys. According to the Autism Society of America
estimates 1 to 1.5 million children and adults are living with autism.
Annual cost of care and services is about $90 billion.
Detecting Autism
There is no cure for autism. But there are many different types of
behavioral, educational and medical interventions that can be used to
improve and optimize a child’s learning and functioning in society.
Susan E. Levy, M.D., a Developmental Pediatrician with the Regional
Autism Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia says,
ideally, a child should be identified by preschool age. Specialized
treatments, like occupational, physical, speech and behavioral
therapies, and sometimes medication, may enable the child to make
enough progress to be mainstreamed into a regular kindergarten
classroom.
Parents are often the first to notice there may be something unusual
about their child. Levy says parents should also monitor a child’s
developmental milestones. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention’s “Act Early” program has a website with milestone markers
for parents to use. It’s available at
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/actearly . Two other sites with
developmental information are the American Academy of Pediatrics (
http://www.aap.org/family/2004PAFBrochure.pdf ) and First Signs® (
http://www.firstsigns.org/concerns/flags.htm ). Caregivers who have
any concerns about developmental issues should speak to the child’s
pediatrician or health care provider.
Source: WHOI
