What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?

Autism is now so widely known that many non-profits and corporations specifically cater to the needs of families with autistic children. Once you understand your child’s diagnosis, you will quickly discover autism-friendly programs ranging from sports teams to movie nights to special days at the zoo. Doctors do not diagnose people with Asperger’s anymore because it’s now thought of as part of autism spectrum disorder. But if you were diagnosed with it before, this will stay as your diagnosis. Other therapies that may be used include assistive technology, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and social skills training.

Is there a test for ASD in adults?

Another is the extreme male brain theory, which represents autism as an extreme version of a typically “male” brain in terms of its systematizing abilities. Other ideas have emerged as well, such as the social motivation hypothesis and the intense world hypothesis. Overall, more research will be needed to understand this complex phenomenon. Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. It takes time for an autistic person — whether a child or adult — to find the support program best suited for them. Certain therapies and approaches can work for some people but not others. Parents and caregivers can also have differing opinions on the best way to advocate for an autistic child.

When you know your child’s diagnosis, you can find support programs and groups run by autistic adults and meet neurotypical and autistic parents with similar experiences. Not only will you discover resources you never knew about, but you may also find new friends—both for yourself and for your child.

However, that study has been debunked by other research and was eventually retracted in 2010. According to the DSM-5, the broader diagnosis of ASD encompasses conditions such as Asperger’s syndrome. Learn more about Asperger’s syndrome and the other older classifications for autism. Symptoms of ASD typically become clearly evident during early childhood, between ages 12 and 24 months. WHO and partners recognize the need to strengthen countries’ abilities to promote the optimal health and well-being of all people with autism. Care for people with autism needs to be accompanied by actions at community and societal levels for greater accessibility, inclusivity and support.

Ask for or read information from other parents of children who have autism. Some children with autism have digestive problems like constipation, belly pain, or nausea and vomiting. Your doctor can suggest a diet that won’t make these issues worse. Some children with autism might appear to be picky eaters.

Problems with communication and social interaction

It is important to note that children with ASD may not have all or any of the behaviors listed as examples here. Research shows that early intervention services can greatly improve a child’s development.3,4In order to make sure your child reaches their full potential, it is very important to receive services as soon as possible. People with ASD may behave, communicate, interact, and learn in ways that are different from most other people. There is often nothing about how they look that sets them apart from other people. For example, some people with ASD may have advanced conversation skills whereas others may be nonverbal. Some people with ASD need a lot of help in their daily lives; others can work and live with little to no support. The prognosis of autism describes the developmental course, gradual autism development, regressive autism development, differential outcomes, academic performance and employment.

If a child shows developmental differences in behavior or functioning during this screening process, the health care provider may refer the child for additional evaluation. Considering caregivers’ experiences and concerns is an important part of the screening process for young children. The health care provider may ask questions about the child’s behaviors and evaluate those answers in combination with information from ASD screening tools and clinical observations of the child. Read more about screening instrumentson the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

What is autism?

Pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). This mouthful of a diagnosis included most children whose autism was more severe than Asperger’s syndrome, but not as severe as autistic disorder. Autism spectrum disorders include social, communication, and behavioral challenges. These problems can be mild, severe, or somewhere in between. A diagnosis is based on the level of support needed – so getting an early diagnosis means treatment can begin sooner. Because people with autism often struggle with communication and social behaviors, they may not be able to tell you what’s wrong.

Autistic people’s behavioral characteristics typically influence development, language, and social competence. Their behavioral characteristics can be observed as perceptual disturbances, disturbances of development rate, relating, speech and language, and motility. A young autistic boy who has arranged his toys in a rowASD includes a wide variety of characteristics.

In others, symptoms may not show up until 24 months of age or later. Some children with ASD gain new skills and meet developmental milestones until around 18 to 24 months of age, and then they stop gaining new skills or lose the skills they once had. It was long mostly presumed that there is a common cause at the genetic, cognitive, and neural levels for the social and non-social components of ASD’s symptoms, described as a triad in the classic autism criteria. But it is increasingly suspected that autism is instead a complex disorder whose core aspects have distinct causes that often cooccur. While it is unlikely that ASD has a single cause, many risk factors identified in the research literature may contribute to ASD development. These include genetics, prenatal and perinatal factors , neuroanatomical abnormalities, and environmental factors. It is possible to identify general factors, but much more difficult to pinpoint specific ones.

Dann Hantao