Although autistic symptoms in children could lessen with age, autism is a lifetime disorder. It is not unique for autism to be confused with other pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), such as Asperger's disorder or syndrome, or to have overlapping symptoms. Physicians use the term autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to describe people with mild symptoms, severe symptoms, or symptoms that fall anywhere in between.
Autism Signs and Symptoms
The symptoms and aspects of autism can display in a wide variety of combinations, from mild to extensive. Some typical autism symptoms are given and the intent is to offer a better understanding of the autistic disorder. It is vital to pay attention to autism symptoms when suspecting that a child may be experiencing from the disorder. Doctors look for specific symptoms in communication and social impairments to diagnose autism. The diagnostic list of symptoms and behaviors characteristic with autism is long, and each affected person expresses his or her own combination of these behaviors.
These symptoms alone don't substantiate a diagnosis of autism, but are taken into consideration when evaluating children. The catalog of signs and symptoms stated in various resources for autism includes those given below.
- social interaction impairment (poor eye-to-eye gazing, lack of social reciprocity, no peer relations)
- communication impairment (can't sustain a conversation, lack of spontaneous play, delay in development of language)
- repeating/stereotyped patterns of behavior (repetitive motor habits, pre-occupation with parts of objects , preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest that is abnormal either in intensity or focus, repeated hand or finger flapping or twisting, complex whole body movements, preoccupation with parts of objects)
Other symptoms of autism include difficulty with verbal and nonverbal communication. There could be symptoms not related to autism, and this is not intended to be an exhaustive list of symptoms.
Autism and Asperger's Syndrome
Cognitive symptoms and social symptoms need to be looked at together as core features of both autism and Asperger's syndrome. Asperger syndrome and autism are fairly similar in behavioral symptoms. Asperger's syndrome is a condition of autism where language and intelligence are ordinary and autistic symptoms present later in childhood. What distinguishes Asperger's Syndrome from autism is the severity of the symptoms and the absence of language delays.
Variability of Autism Symptoms
Autism symptoms can range from mild to severe and differ in intensity from symptom to symptom. Children with autism can display a wide range of symptoms, which range in severity from mild to disabling. Because of autism's variety, its symptoms seem best understood when presented descriptively and with specific examples. Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Autism could vary on an individual basis for each patient. Children with Autism symptoms in addition vary a good deal in their mental abilities and also their communicative skills. Autism is sometimes coupled with retardation, which makes most teaching techniques ineffective. While the symptoms of autism may vary greatly from person to person, there is no one 'best' treatment which will help everyone.
Severity of Symptoms
Clinical accounts indicate that conditions resembling autism do not differ just in terms of severity, but also in pattern of symptoms. Because it varies widely in its severity and symptoms, autism could go unrecognized, particularly in mildly affected individuals or in those with multiple handicaps. There is a range of severity in autism symptoms, and for this reason the term “autism spectrum disorders” is often used. Children with autism could have diverse behaviors and abilities because of the severity of their symptoms. Based on the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), persons with autism have normal life expectancies and can lead typical or near-normal lives, depending on the severity of their symptoms.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis of autism might be difficult, because the condition varies widely in terms of its symptoms and degree of severity. The diagnosis of autism is established by the appearance or absence of a collection of behavioral symptoms using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they are indeed autism symptoms. Your doctor can help to determine whether the symptoms are caused by autism, a connected disorder, or another condition. The diagnosis of Autistic Disorder consists of a total of at least six observational items from social impairment, communication impairment and behavior impairment categories outlined (see list) with at least two from social impairment, and one each from communication impairment and behavior impairment.
Because the symptoms of autism might differ greatly from person to person, there is no one 'best' treatment which will assist everyone. Children with autism may exhibit mild, moderate or substantial symptoms in three areas (social, communication and behavior). A few children exhibited symptoms of autism in their first-year birthday video, for example less frequent use of words or babbling. Other autistic children who behaved normally at age 1, appeared to go back and exhibited typical symptoms of autism by age 2.
Conclusion - Autism Treatment
Some children in treatment programs lose sufficient of their most disabling autism symptoms to function reasonably well in a regular classroom. In 1996, a young boy with autism was given secretin for an endoscopy and exhibited improvements in a few of his symptoms of autism. Some have noted the improvement of autism symptoms to treatment with vancomycin. There are numerous different medications that are prescribed to treat the symptoms of autism. It has been reported that there are no well-established medications to treat core symptoms of autism. Experts believe that early intervention is vital in addressing the symptoms associated with autism. Children do not "outgrow" autism but symptoms may decrease as the child develops and receives treatment. Over the years, a variety of interventions have shown promise for improving symptoms of autism in certain children. Medications used to treat anxiety and depression are being investigated as a way to relieve certain autism symptoms. Atypical neuroleptics look to be promising agents to treat behavioral symptoms frequently cropping up among autism patients.
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