Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder. Individuals both children and adults with Autism or Asperger’s generally have no distinguishing features due to their disability and appear completely normal. However, spouses and parents with family member affected often relate feeling that something was not quite right about their child’s development.
Being in a family affected by Autism or Asperger some characteristic that can be displayed are not exclusively show in children but adults as well. These behaviours may result from an absence of spoken language, because of unusual play for children and behaviour, or extreme outbursts in response to a change in routine. Some parents have also identified that their child lacked eye contact or sometimes appeared deaf or the old selective hearing.
Autism is characterised by delays or abnormal functioning in social interaction and communication, an absence of symbolic and imaginative play skills and the presence of repetitive and stereotypic behaviour.
Diagnosis is generally made by a Paediatrician for children or Psychiatrists for adults. These specialist experienced in Autism observe the child’s interacting with toys and other people and provide parent/carer interviews through the process. Additional testing by a Speech Pathologist, Occupational Therapist and Audiologist may be required to rule out conditions other than Autism and evaluate present skills. As one of the hallmarks of Autism is the impairment of communication skills, it can be very difficult to test the intelligence level of Children with Autism and testing their cognitive abilities is often nearly impossible.
It is estimated half the population with Autism may never speak. However, many people with Autism are frequently quite intelligent, but may appear to function as intellectually impaired due to their communication difficulties.
The symptoms of Autism can vary widely from one individual to the next. Autism is referred to as a spectrum disorder because it ranges in severity across a wide range of conditions including Asperger Syndrome and High Functioning Autism. The severe form of the syndrome may include severe self injurious, repetitive, highly unusual and aggressive behaviour. Some people affected by these anti-social behaviours can end up in our jails, if not detected early in life.
