Autism is a form of neurological disorder. It is categorised under Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD). Besides Autism, PDD includes Asperger’s Syndrome, Rett’s Syndrome and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDDNOS). Sometimes referred to as Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Autism covers a wide range of characteristics or symptoms. The term “autism” used on this site includes the entire spectrum of ASD. Autism affects a person’s ability to communicate and relate appropriately. Left unchecked, autism can degenerate into a permanent developmental disability.
What Causes Autism?
Over 60years ago, Dr Leo Kanner applied the term autism to a group of children who were self-absorbed and who had severe social, language and behavioural problems. Until today, nobody knows for sure what causes autism.
One thing is certain. Autism is neither due to bad parenting nor nurturing. The “Refrigerator Mother” theory which claims that autism arises from lack of bonding between mother and child is untrue.
There have been claims that Autism is triggered by genetic or environmental factors, but this theory remains inconclusive. Other notable suspects are vaccination, food allergies, chemical intolerance and yeast infection.
The Signs and Symptoms of Autism
Signs and symptoms of autism include problems in one or more of the following major areas of development (at age appropriate level):
Social Interaction.
lack of eye contact/gaze (look through rather than look at you)
lack of meaningflil facial expression,
unusual body posture/gesture,
failure to develop peer friendship and peer play,
not seeking to share enjoyment/interest/achievement with others,
lack of social-emotional response
Speech and Language Development
delay (including echolalia) or total lack of spoken language,
inability to initiate or sustain conversation,
lack of spontaneous make-believe play or social imitative play
Repetitive and Abnormal Behaviour Patterns/Interest/Activities
compulsive adherence to specific routine or ritual,
Obsession with parts of objects
atypical play (spinning, lining up object, arranging and rearranging certain objects, staring at/touching of toys but no appropriate play).
repetitive mannerism which are socially uncommon (e.g. hand flapping, body twisting)
Less common symptoms are:
excessive fear,
extreme tantrum or crying fits
irregular sleeping pattern
sound hypersensitivity
pulling away from caregiver to avoid physical contact
The level of deficit/delay/excesses varies widely, hence the word “Spectrum”. Symptoms may be present from birth or appear gradually or suddenly after 1.5 to 3 years of apparently normal development. Not all children with autism are mentally retarded. In fact some are very bright. Many children will achieve normal or even above average scores in a standardized IQ evaluation, but their scores will be scattered (eg.. they may score above age level on performance tasks but otherwise in language tasks).
It is also a common misconception that children with autism are withdrawn. Many children may be social (e.g. enjoying hugs and kisses) but it is usually on the child’s terms. For instance, the child must approach another individual for affection but not vice versa.
Instead of normal developmental skills, young children with autism may develop one or more of the following skills early:
the ability to recognise letters and signs (hyperlexia),
exceptional good memory
These strengths may mask the severity of the many other symptoms.
How Common Is Autism?
In the United States today, it is estimated that one in every 110 children is diagnosed with autism. Their government statistics suggest the prevalence rate of autism is increasing 10-17 percent annually. Autism is getting more and more prevalent now although no one knows exactly why.
Autism is found in every country and region of the world, in families of all known racial, religious, education and social-economic backgrounds. Autism is about 3 to 4 times more common in boys than girls.
Cure for Autism?
Is there a cure for autism? Can children with autism “recover”? Up to today, there is no known cure for autism. However, intervention programmes have shown positive results. Some children who were previously diagnosed as having autism or PDD had become “indistinguishable” from their peers after going through certain intervention programmes. Nevertheless, there are no set criteria to predict such “recovery”.
