What is autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?
Autism is a developmental disability that most often appears during a child’s first years of life. Autism impacts the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Children and adults with autism often have difficulty with communication (verbal and non-verbal), interacting with others and play activities. Over one half million people in the U.S. today have some form of autism. Its prevalence rate now places it as the third most common developmental disability – more common than Down’s syndrome. Yet the majority of the public, including many professionals in the medical, educational, and public health fields, are still unaware of how autism appears in the population, how it affects people and how to work effectively with individuals with autism. Autism is often referred to as a spectrum disorder, meaning that the symptoms and characteristics of autism can present themselves in a wide variety of combinations, from mild to severe. Although au
[10] While the etiology (or medical cause) of autism or ASD is unknown, there is substantial agreement about certain features of the affliction. Autistic disorders are complex neurological conditions affecting between 10 and 15 of every 10,000 children. They are significantly more prevalent among boys than girls. Among children with untreated autism or autism spectrum disorders, about half of all pre-school age children (ages 2 to 6) are non-verbal. Most have limited attachment to caregivers, display little interest in pleasing them, evade eye contact and resist displays of physical affection. In a group of peers, a child with autism is likely to avoid contact and remain isolated from the group. Instead of playing imaginatively with toys, autistic children often engage in repetitive behaviour such as arranging objects into neat rows or flapping their hands in front of their eyes. When these behaviours are interrupted, or when they do not get their way, many autistic children have inten
Related Questions
- What is the chance that a younger brother or sister of a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) will also have an ASD?
- Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) need structure. How does Conscious Discipline help?
- What is an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or a pervasive developmental disorder (PDD)?
