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Causes Of Autism Spectrum Disorder
Although the exact cause of autism spectrum disorder is not known, current research points to genetic changes that occur during a babys development in the womb. Autism spectrum disorder tends to run in families, and researchers are trying to identify genes that may be passed down through the generations. Special types of brain images taken of children with the condition show that certain areas of their brains develop and function differently from those of children without the condition. Autism spectrum disorder is not caused by bad parenting.
Is Rett Syndrome Autism
Rett syndrome or Rett disorder has also been called autism-dementia-ataxia-loss of purposeful hand use syndrome.
But its not included on the autism spectrum. Its a brain disorder caused by genetic mutations.
Classic Rett syndrome usually affects girls who display typical development for the first few months. Then, symptoms start to appear, involving issues with:
- language and communication
If you think your child might have symptoms of autism, speak with their pediatrician or a primary care physician. They can refer you to the appropriate specialist, such as a:
- developmental pediatrician
- psychiatrist or psychologist
You can also request an evaluation from your states public early childhood assistance center. Its free, and you dont need a doctors referral or diagnosis. Your local public school district can also provide assistance.
Theres no one medical test to diagnose autism spectrum disorder. A doctor can make the diagnosis with a comprehensive behavior evaluation and developmental screening.
Some people on the spectrum need minimal support services. Others require a lot. Either way, early intervention is associated with long-term positive effects.
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Can Children On The Autism Spectrum Outgrow Their Disabilities
The good news:most kids affected by Autism dont have intellectual disabilities==> How To Prevent Meltdowns and Tantrums In Children With High-Functioning Autism and Asperger’sabout 10% of those who started out in the low-functioning group also moved into the highest group by age 14==> Parenting System that Significantly Reduces Defiant Behavior in Teens with Aspergers and High-Functioning AutismMore resources for parents of children and teens with High-Functioning Autism and Asperger’s:
How Is Autism Spectrum Disorder Treated
ASD is most often a life-long condition. Both children and adults with autism benefit from behavioral interventions or therapies that can teach new skills to address the core deficits of autism and to reduce the core symptoms. Every child and adult with autism is unique. For this reason, the treatment plan is individualized to meet specific needs. It is best to begin interventions as soon as possible, so the benefits of therapy can continue on throughout the course of life.
Many people with ASD often have additional medical conditions, such as gastrointestinal and feeding issues, seizures and sleep disturbances. Treatment can involve behavioral therapy, medications or both.
Early intensive behavioral treatments involves the entire family and possibly a team of professionals. As your child ages and develops, treatment may be modified to cater to their specific needs.
During adolescence, children benefit from transition services that promote skills of independence essential in adulthood. The focus at that point is on employment opportunities and job skill training.
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Can Some Kids Outgrow Autism
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, March 19, 2019 — Some toddlers thought to have mild autism “outgrow” the diagnosis, but most continue to struggle with language and behavior, new research suggests.
The study is not the first to document cases of autism “recovery.” Doctors have known for decades that a small number of young children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder seem to outgrow it.
But what does that mean for those kids? The findings suggest that the vast majority continue to face challenges and need support, said lead researcher Dr. Lisa Shulman.
Her team found that of the 38 children who “lost” their autism diagnosis, most were found to have other conditions — including learning disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and anxiety disorders.
Why did the picture change for those children?
That’s the “million-dollar question,” said Shulman, a professor of pediatrics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Health System in New York City.
One possibility is that the initial diagnosis was wrong. But it’s also possible some children responded to early therapy aimed at supporting their development.
Shulman suspects both scenarios are true.
On the other hand, early behavioral therapy can help children with autism build their social and language skills, and ease behavior issues. So young kids who respond may no longer meet the criteria for autism at a certain point.
Evidence Weak For Social Communication Disorder
This article is part of:
Helen Tager-Flusberg
Boston University
As part of its overhaul of the classification of autism and related pervasive developmental disorders, the DSM-5, the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, introduces a new category: social communication disorder , classified under the heading of communication disorders.
The new disorders features include difficulties with social uses of both verbal and nonverbal communication, which overlap with the social communication impairments that now define autism. The major distinction between SCD and autism is that SCD does not include repetitive behaviors or restricted interests, thus capturing a group of children that would fall outside autisms definition.
In the public eye, changes to autisms diagnostic criteria have sparked the most attention and controversy, but among clinical researchers, SCD is raising far greater concern. The essential problem, as many commentators see it, is that there is little evidence that SCD has either reliability or validity as a distinct category of neurodevelopmental disorder1, 2, 3.
No one doubts that there are children and adults who have significant problems with social communication and pragmatic aspects of language, but the question is, do these problems warrant a separate clinical diagnosis or are they better viewed as comorbid symptoms seen in individuals with other neurodevelopmental disorders?
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Does Autism Get Worse After Age 3
While parents typically report concerns in the first year of life,3 many children do not receive diagnoses until much later. Several studies have suggested that diagnoses of autism made at age 2 years are stable through age 3 years,4-7 and diagnoses made by age 5 years are stable up to late adolescence.
We Need To Stop Perpetuating The Myth That Children Grow Out Of Autism
Around 1 per cent of the population has an autism spectrum disorder, with estimates ranging from one in 70to one in 150.
While people differ in the range and severity of their symptoms, common features include difficulties with communication and social interaction, restrictive and repetitive behaviours and interests, and sensory sensitivities.
According to the 2017 Autism in Australia report, autism is most prevalent among children aged five to 14, with 83 per cent of Australians with an autism diagnosis aged under 25.
But while children are more likely to have a diagnosis of autism than adults, this doesn’t mean children “grow out” of autism.
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Working With A Job Coach
Nat works three days a week, sharing a job coach with two other young men. This coach, paid for by a state allocation, looks out for Nat at his job at CVS stocking coolers, making sure he understands what he is expected to do and stays on task. Hes also about to start a trial run at a second job retrieving shopping carts at a grocery store. Currently Nat spends the other two days in DayHab, short for Day Habilitation Services, meant to help people with developmental disabilities improve or maintain their independent living skills.
DayHab is often babysitting, Senator says, table top activities, coloring, television or sheltered workshops, with very little out in the community, and theres a mixture of disabilities. This isnt true of Nats program, she says all of his colleagues, as Senator terms them, are developmentally or intellectually delayed, possibly due to autism or Down syndrome.
Half of Nats funding comes from the state, half from Medicaid. After hes given a budget for rent, living expenses, transportation and his job coach, the family works with Nats service provider to come up with ways to stretch the money, Senator says. The family pays for extras like a recent three-day outing with a social group to New Hampshire.
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Are Siblings At Greater Risk For Autism Spectrum Disorder
The truth is that genetics do play a role in autism. When one child is diagnosed with ASD, the next child to come along has about a 20% greater risk of developing autism than normal. When the first two children in a family have both been diagnosed with ASD, the third child has about a 32% greater risk of developing ASD.
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Some Children May Truly Outgrow Autism
by Nicholette Zeliadt / 19 October 2016
Topics:
Hyperactivity hint:
Children who officially lose their autism diagnosis show no residual signs of the condition, a new study suggests1. The findings support the idea that these children no longer have autism features.
They really are indistinguishable from their typically developing peers, says study investigator Inge-Marie Eigsti, associate professor of psychology at the University of Connecticut in Storrs. They dont have any symptoms at all.
The study, published 18 August in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, is the latest effort to document the characteristics of children with a so-called optimal outcome. These children were diagnosed with autism before age 5 but no longer meet criteria for the condition.
Eigsti and her colleagues compared 22 of these children with 27 children who have autism and 23 typical children all 8 to 18 years old. The groups did not differ significantly in the proportion of boys and girls or in average intelligence.
The researchers evaluated autism features in the children using a standard diagnostic test. As part of the test, the children told stories and acted out tasks such as brushing their teeth. Nine untrained undergraduate students then watched video clips of these tasks. The students were unaware of the childrens diagnoses and used a standard scale to rate how extroverted, agreeable, conscientious, neurotic and open to experience each child seemed.
How Did The Researchers Interpret The Results
The researchers say the results clearly demonstrate the existence of a group of individuals with an early history of ASD who no longer meet the criteria for this condition. Their communication and social skills are on a par with individuals of typical development, matched for IQ, sex and age.
They say a small number of this group had some weakness on a face recognition test, but not beyond what might be expected by chance.
As this is the first part of a wider study, the researchers say that further tests will examine possible deficits in more subtle aspects of social interaction or cognition, in the OO group.
These first results, they say, confirm the possibility that some individuals initially diagnosed with autism can have optimal outcomes and function within normal limits.
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What Is Autism Spectrum Disorder Previously Called Autism And Pervasive Developmental Disorders
Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by the following:
- Difficulties in social communication differences, including verbal and nonverbal communication.
- Deficits in social interactions.
- Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests or activities and sensory problems
Many of those with ASD can have delayed or absence of language development, intellectual disabilities, poor motor coordination and attention weaknesses.
What Is The Difference Between Autism And Autism Spectrum Disorder
The term autism was changed to autism spectrum disorder in 2013 by the American Psychiatric Association. ASD is now an umbrella term that covers the following conditions:
- Autistic disorder.
- Pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified .
- Asperger syndrome.
People with ASD have trouble with social interactions and with interpreting and using non-verbal and verbal communication in social contexts. Individuals with ASD may also have the following difficulties:
- Inflexible interests.
- Insistence on sameness in environment or routine.
- Repetitive motor and sensory behaviors, like flapping arms or rocking.
- Increased or decreased reactions to sensory stimuli.
How well someone with ASD can function in day-to-day life depends on the severity of their symptoms. Given that autism varies widely in severity and everyday impairment, the symptoms of some people arent always easily recognized.
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Why Are These Myths So Harmful
Many parents struggle with their childs diagnosis of autism, as they face the realisation their childs life may be very different from the one they imagined.
The myth that children can grow out of autism if their parents do a good enough job of educating or changing them is harmful for the whole family.
It can prevent parents from seeing and accepting their child as the wonderful human being they are and recognising their strengths.
Sadly, it can also lead to a lifetime of the autistic person perceiving themselves to be a failed neurotypical person rather than a successful autistic person.
Australia, like many countries, has made great strides in the provision of educational supports for these students in primary and secondary school. Then we stop.
Of those who complete secondary school, only 19% receive a post-school qualification. This compares with 59% of those with any form of disability and 68% of those without a disability.
In terms of work, ABS data from 2015 shows the unemployment rate for people with an autism diagnosis was 31.6% more than three times the rate for people with any disability and almost six times the rate of people without disability .
Read more:Expecting autistic people to ‘fit in’ is cruel and unproductive value us for our strengths
Autistic children dont grow into neurotypical adults, they grow into autistic adults who are under-serviced, isolated and stigmatised.
Answer The Five Questions At The End Of This Post And If You Answer No To Two Or More Begin Early Intervention Right Away But First Here Are Some Early Warning Signs Of Asd
Early Warning Signs: First Year
Even young infants are very social, so its possible to detect signs of autism in how babies interact with their world. At this age, a child with an ASD may:
- Not turn to a mothers voice
- Not respond to his own name
- Not look people in the eye
- Have no babbling or pointing by age one
- Not smile or respond to social cues from others
Babies who do not have autism can have these behaviors, too, but it’s best to contact your doctor right away with any concerns.
At 12 Months
- A child with typical development will turn his head when he hears his name.
- A child with ASD might not turn to look, even after his name is repeated several times, but will respond to other sounds.
At 18 Months
- A child with delayed speech skills will point, gesture, or use facial expressions to make up for her lack of talking.
- A child with ASD might make no attempt to compensate for delayed speech or might limit speech to parroting what is heard on TV or what she just heard.
At 24 Months
- A child with typical development brings a picture to show his mother and shares his joy from it with her.
- A child with ASD might bring her a bottle of bubbles to open, but he does not look at his mom’s face when she does or share in the pleasure of playing together.
ASD at any age might include the following signs:
- Repeated motions
- Avoiding eye contact or physical touch
- Delays in learning to talk
- Repeating words or phrases
- Getting upset by minor changes
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Some Children Can ‘recover’ From Autism But Problems Often Remain Study Finds
- Date:
- Albert Einstein College of Medicine
- Summary:
- Research in the past several years has shown that children can outgrow a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder , once considered a lifelong condition. In a new study, researchers have found that the vast majority of such children still have difficulties that require therapeutic and educational support.
Research in the past several years has shown that children can outgrow a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder , once considered a lifelong condition. In a new study, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have found that the vast majority of such children still have difficulties that require therapeutic and educational support. The study was published online today in the Journal of Child Neurology.
“It’s certainly encouraging to confirm that a subset of children with early ASD diagnosis accompanied by developmental delays can in essence recover from the disorder and go on to have typical social and cognitive functioning,” said lead author Lisa Shulman, M.D., professor of pediatrics at Einstein and interim director of the Rose F. Kennedy Children’s Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center at Montefiore. “But by and large, these children continue to struggle with daily life. Almost all of them still have to contend with language and learning disabilities and a variety of emotional and behavioral problems.”
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Aging Out Of Services
This forced transition, called aging out, pushes them into the woefully lacking system for disabled adults. And its not just those with more severely disabled children who are worried. Parents whose children are termed high-functioning, including those with an Aspergers diagnosis, have reason to be concerned that their kidswho may be dealing with things like ADHD, anxiety and sensory issues in addition to their social and communication delaysare not going to magically stop needing support after they reach a certain chronological age.
Liane Kupferberg Carters autistic son Mickey turns 20 in July and, Carter, who has written much about the challenges of raising a child on the spectrum, admits to floundering.I dont know how to do this, she says. When our son Jonathan was preparing to leave home for college, we had a whole shelf of books to guide our family. But theres no such book guiding Carter as she faces the next step with her verbal but cognitively challenged son, diagnosed with PDD-NOS. Were making it up as we go, she says. Carter is certain of only one thing for Mickey, who likes to camp it up in a pair of Groucho Marx glasses: Due to his cognitive challenges and autism-related epilepsy, which is only partially controlled by medication, he will always need a supervised living situation.
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