Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life. The result of a neurological disorder that affects the brain, it is four times more prevalent in boys than in girls and knows no racial, ethnic, or social boundaries. It is part of a group of disorders known as autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Today, 1 in 110 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined.

Autism impairs a person’s ability to communicate and relate to others. It affects communication, social skills, pattern and range of interests, and sensory responsiveness. Autism is a spectrum disorder meaning the symptoms and characteristics of autism can be present any combination of the behaviors and symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe.

Autism was first identified in 1943 by Dr. Leo Kanner of Johns Hopkins Hospital. At the same time, a German scientist, Dr. Hans Asperger, described a milder form of the disorder that is now known as Asperger Syndrome. These two disorders are listed in the DSM IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) as two of the five developmental disorders that fall under the autism spectrum disorders. The others are PDD NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder), Rett Syndrome, and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder. All of these disorders are characterized by varying degrees of impairment in communication skills and social abilities, and also by repetitive behaviors.

Characteristics
As indicated above, autism is a spectrum disorder and no two individuals with autism will
have the exact same symptoms. Below is a partial list of the characteristics of autism.

1. Social Skills

may have difficulty with nonverbal behavior (eye contact, facial expression)
may have problems making friends
may have difficulty understanding another person’s point of view
may have difficulty understanding other peoples emotions or their own
may not interact with others in a typical manner or may not be interested in people at all
may prefer to be alone
may be interested in people but not know how to relate to them.

2. Communication

may be non-verbal or have a delay in talking
may repeat (echo) words and phrases over and over (echolalia, instant and delayed)
may have difficulties with ‘you’ and ‘I’
may have a large vocabulary, formal speech and speak like a ‘little professor’
may have problems with conversations
may have difficulty in turn taking
may speak too loudly or have a flat or unusual tone of voice
may have difficulty with metaphors and take everything literally
may have difficulty understanding abstract ideas

3. Play/Interests/Activities

may have lack of spontaneous or imaginative play
may not imitate others’ actions
may not initiate pretend games
may have limited interests or activities
may do the same things repeatedly
may have problems breaking with routines
may have an unusual fascination in a subject or activity

4. Sensory

may have unusual responses to sound
may have unusual responses to smells
may have unusual responses to pain (may exhibit no reaction to pain)
may have unusual responses to touch
may not like to be held or cuddled or might cuddle only when they want to.
may engage in self-injury, such as head-banging or biting

5. Other

may have no sense of danger
may have problems generalizing information from one setting to another
may have poor sleeping patterns
may have poor eating habits
may have poor coordination (may have difficulty in understanding where own body is located in space in relation to surroundings)
may have problems with sequencing and/or organization
may have difficulty determining important information from irrelevant information
may have uneven skill development
may focus on details rather than the big picture or the reverse

Co-Existing Conditions
Autism can co-exist with any number of other conditions such as (but not limited to) Epilepsy, Mental Retardation, Down Syndrome, Fragile X Syndrome, Landau-Kleffner Syndrome, William’s Syndrome, Tourette’s Syndrome, or Oppositional Defiancy Disorder.