Autism, or ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder), is a developmental disease or condition caused by differences in the brain due to environmental, genetic, or non-genetic influences.
One out of every 44 children is diagnosed with autism in the United States, according to CDC (Center for Disease Control). ADDM (Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network) reported that the increase in autism was up to 178% since the year 2000. This signifies that autism is growing rapidly in the United States.
Due to the increase in the prevalence of autism, there are various debates about its cause. Some argue that the rise in prevalence was due to other intellectual disabilities identified as autism.
In contrast, others believe that there is just a better diagnosis these days. However, there is reason to believe that the increase in the prevalence of autism is mainly due to environmental or genetic causes.
Why is it important to recognize early signs of autism?
Early detection and intervention can significantly improve a child’s cognitive, language, and social deficits. An early diagnosis can help the child receive proper care and support during his/her lifetime.
Since Autism is a spectrum disorder, those affected would experience a wide variety of symptoms and may also differ in severity. Not all that are diagnosed with autism may exhibit all of its symptoms.
There is no medical examination to determine if a child has ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). However, the most trustworthy diagnosis would be examining a child’s behavior and identifying the severity of the behaviors.
Here are some methods used to determine if an individual shows symptoms or behaviors of ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder):
- Autism Spectrum Disorder Communication Checklist
The ability to communicate is mainly affected by ASD. A child may exhibit communication symptoms such as:
- Being literal in conversations
- Speaking less or no words at all
- Giving unrelated responses to questions
- Having a flat tone of voice
- Having poor eye contact and also lack facial expression
- Using less or no gestures at all
- Not communicating their thoughts or needs in any manner
- Not understanding the intended meaning of words
- Isolating or inhibiting the interaction with other people
- Failing to respond when you call them by their names
- Failing to comprehend or understand sarcasm
- Excessively repeating words from TV shows, movies, and other people
- Reversing pronouns when talking or speaking
- ASD Unusual Physical Behavior Checklist
A person with ASD is said to be obsessive, restricted, and rigid in their activities, behaviors, and interests. A child may exhibit repetitive and constant body movements and obsessive attachment to atypical objects. A more specific manifestation of such physical behavior would be:
- They may be picky eaters and may dislike foods based on their flavor, smell, or textures.
- A person with ASD may engage in stimming to calm themselves, such as:
- rocking back and forth
- flapping hands
- They may exhibit behaviors or interests which are inappropriate for an individual’s age.
- They might get upset by minor changes or routines.
- They show intense and obsessive interests.
- They might give uncanny reactions to certain textures.
- Instead of playing with them, they might line up objects or toys.
- Over- or under-responding to certain sensory inputs.
- They are very strict when complying with their routines.
- They are stiff and may walk on toes.
- ASD Social Skills Checklist
Social skills issues are one of the trademark symptoms of ASD.
Children diagnosed with autism may show difficulty with social interaction and may be considered socially awkward. These societal issues may lead to consequential problems in the individual’s everyday life. The inability to comprehend, assess emotions, and recognize social cues restricts their ability for social interaction.
Here are certain social behaviors that you may observe:
- They usually avoid eye contact and are awkward with other people.
- They find it difficult to learn and interact with others.
- Since they isolate, they find it hard to make friends.
- They find it hard to talk and share their feelings.
- They find difficulty understanding people’s emotions or feelings
Here are more examples of societal issues related to ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder)
- They don’t have any interest in others.
- They lack or don’t show interest in the world and the people surrounding them.
- They don’t like to be hugged or held.
- They fail to respond when they are called by their names.
- They do not share interests with others.
- They do not comprehend the concept of personal space.
- They prefer to do things alone.
- They shy away from physical contact
These are some known behaviors, signs, or symptoms displayed by individuals with ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder). Diagnosis is important to people with ASD because a lot of adults that have been diagnosed gain a sense of relief after they receive their diagnosis. These individuals managed to understand and make sense of their behaviors and feelings.
Also, the need to support children with ASD and other developmental disabilities raises concerns, especially for those that develop other medical conditions. Children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) in the United States are said to develop twice as likely compared to other typically developing peers.
This highlights the need to care about an individual’s holistic health and not just focus on ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). If you want to identify and diagnose possible signs of autism in developmentally disabled children, you can enroll in autism clinical trials for possible development of treatment.