Definition

Autism is a spectrum disorder, a complex neurological disorder that impacts the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Autism also affects how a child perceives and processes sensory information. Autism is included within the category of Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD), which indicates pervasive and significant deficits across several developmental areas.

PDD’s include Autistic Disorder, Asperger’s Disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS), Rett’s Disorder and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder.

Autism is found in every country and region of the world, and in families of all racial, ethnic, religious, and economic backgrounds. Emerging in childhood, it affects about 1 of 166 births and is three to four times more common in boys than girls. Girls with the disorder, however, tend to have more severe symptoms and lower intelligence.

Signs of autism almost always develop before a child is 3 years old, although the condition is sometimes not diagnosed until later. Toddlers with autism do not usually develop speech normally and may seem to be deaf although hearing tests are normal.

The severity of autism can vary. Symptoms and characteristics of autism can present themselves in a wide variety of combinations, from mild to severe. Although autism is defined by a certain set of behaviors, children and adults can exhibit and combination of the behaviors in any degree of severity.

Description

Developmental Areas affected by Autism

Social Interactions

• Lack of interest in sharing enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people.
• Failure to establish friendships with other children.
• Children may show “appropriate” interactions with their parents and close family members giving parents a false sense of assurance that autism is not present.
• Lack of empathy. People with autism may have difficulty understanding another person’s feelings, such as pain or sorrow.
• Lack of facial expressions, eye contact and body posture during social interactions. Communication Skills
• Delay in or lack of speech and language development.
• Echolalic speech (repeating speech previously heard) is common. Children will sometimes repeat what they hear, but with no comprehension of meaning.
• A lack of vocal inflexion resulting in a very flat monotone verbal production. Speech production can sound very robotic and artificial.
• Children with autism may have a motor speech impairment in addition to their language impairment which significantly limits speech production.

Sensory Integration

• Oversensitivity or undersensitivity to touch, taste, smell, sound or sight.Oversensitivity: may avoid touching certain textures, be picky eaters, or cover their eyes in response to extreme lighting and/or cover their ears for loud noises.
• Undersensitivity: may desire to touch certain textures; hot water, spicy foods, sand or mud, may seek out movement such as swinging twirling or jumping.
• May require a need for sameness and routines and may have a preoccupation with certain topics and/or activities
• Self-stimulatory movements are rhythmic, repetitive motor patterns in which the child engages. Examples include; hand flapping, rocking, rubbing, chewing, humming and spinning.