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Posts Tagged ‘Characteristics Of Autism’

31
Jan

One Of The Common Characteristics Of Autism Is Sensitivity (mainly To Sound)? What Are The Common Sounds?

One of the common characteristics of Autism is sensory issues (mainly sensitivity to noise)? What are the common loud noises Autistic children – people mainly cannot stand to hear?

21
Nov

Discovering the Characteristics of Autism

The research and data compiled by leading institutions have shown that autism, or autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) affects approximately 1 in 165 children in America. Based on those numbers, that would indicate that an alarming 1.5 million Americans have autism to various degrees. It should be noted that many of these cases of autism have not been diagnosed. The annual growth rate of autism is greater than 14%, meaning it has become a major developmental disability for todays children.

The instance of autism is not relegated to just children, nor does it seem to afflict any particular person based on race or social structure. It also does not appear to be a result of any injury or accident that may have involved trauma. One thing that is known, however, is that males are about 4 times more likely to have autism than females.

So that you can understand how to work with a patient afflicted with autism, it is necessary to understand some background about what autism is and what signs an afflicted person shows. In a core sense, autism is just one of several things known as a cognitive disability or cognitive disorder. Such a disorder has a negative impact on the childs ability to learn and develop normally, particularly from the aspect of social interaction. Typically, autism can be diagnosed as early as age 3 in most children, and impairs how the brain reacts to certain stimuli. In that sense, autism is thought to be a neurological disorder. The most prominent signs of autism are difficulty in both verbal and non-verbal communication skills. Difficult with verbal communication is self-explanatory, but in the non-verbal sense, this deals with the difficulty in having social interactions with other people.

Since there are varying degrees of autism, it is critical that a child who is suspected of being afflicted with autism be diagnosed as early in life as possible. By doing this, the child can benefit from schools that specialize in children with special needs, which are becoming increasing prominent in almost all school districts. Professionals at these schools have been trained to understand autism and to take into account the specialized learning techniques that can reach these children.

One of the common myths about autism is that children afflicted with this disorder are lacking in intelligence. This is not necessarily the case, and in fact in terms of intelligence, the autistic child can rank right up there with their peers. The movie Rain Man with Dustin Hoffman illustrated this, where Dustin Hoffman played an autistic adult with many social interaction problems, but yet was a genius in the casino and with numbers in general.

There are several characteristics that autistic people will display that can be a clue to the potential presence of autism. Unfortunately, there are no conclusive laboratory tests that can definitively state whether or not a person has autism, simply because it really is a neurological disorder. Such characteristics include, as discussed above, difficulty in verbal and non-verbal communication, distinct resistance to change in schedule or routine, an abnormally low threshold for pain, difficulty or discomfort in making eye contact, and a tendency to fixate on a particular object for very long periods of time.

Understanding the characteristics of autistic spectrum disorder or ASD so that it can be accurately diagnosed is the first step towards creating an effective course of action to working with that child during their developmental years.

Jon is a computer engineer who maintains web sites on a variety of topics based on his knowledge and experience. You can read more about Autism and Autistic Spectrum Disorder at his web site Autism Explained.
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25
Aug

What is Autism

Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears within the first three years of life. The result of a neurological disorder that affects the functioning of the brain, autism impacts the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction, communication, and cognitive function.Primary characteristicsThe primary characteristics of autism include impaired reciprocal social interactions, impaired communication, and restricted behaviours. The impaired social interactions are among the most conspicuous of the autistic deficits and were the reason leo kanner used the term “autism” to describe the syndrome in 1943. Social difficulties of autism include impaired social play, a general preference for isolation in the presence of others, failure to seek comfort at times of distress, indifference to others and an inability to understand social rules and conventions. What Causes Autism?Autism affects about 1 in every 150 kids, but no one knows what causes it. Some scientists think that some kids might be more likely to get autism because it or similar disorders run in their families. Knowing the exact cause of autism is hard because the human brain is very complicated.Difficulties are caused by a variety of conditions that occur either before, during, or after birth affecting brain development. This interferes with an individual’s ability to interpret and interact with the world. Some scientists tie the communication problems to a “theory of mind” or impaired ability to think about thoughts or imagine another individual’s state of mind. Along with this is an impaired ability to symbolize, both when trying to communicate and in play.Current research has identified various possible causes of autism – brain dysfunction, genetic factors and allergic reactions. There does not seem to be one clear cause that affects all the people diagnosed with autism – the research continues. Poor parenting does NOT cause autism. The diagnosis of autism is made by observation from a qualified consultant (contact us if you need further information on this or refer to our Diagnosis factsheet).Autism – SymptomsSignificant problems developing nonverbal communication skills, such as eye-to-eye gazing, facial expressions, and body posture.Failure to establish friendships with children the same age. Performs repetitive movements, such as rocking, spinning or hand-flappingDevelops specific routines or ritualsLack of slang or “kidspeak”Difficulty understanding tone of voice and body language as a way of expressing sarcasm, humor, irony, etc. Does not respond to name Loses language or social skillsInappropriate laughter Marked physical overactivity or extreme passivityTreatments for Autism – - Treatments and Therapies for Autism Spectrum DisordersThere is no cure for autism. Treatments are aimed at reducing specific symptoms. Because the symptoms vary so widely from one person to the next, there is not a single approach that works for every person. A spectrum of interventions include training in music, listening, vision, speech and language, and senses. Special diets and medications may also be prescribed.Parents should be educated in behavioral techniques so they can participate in all aspects of the child’s care and treatment. The more specialized instruction and behavior therapy the child receives, the more likely it is that the condition will improve.Many different biomedical treatments are used in autism. The most widely used are medications to treat seizures and behavioral and emotional problems associated with autism.

10
Aug

Information on Autism

 

Autism is a lifelong disorder. It interferes with a person’s ability to understand what he or she sees, hears, and touches. For this reason, a person with autism has very difficult problems knowing how to behave properly and how to interact with other people. The person has to be taught behaviors that develop normally in most people. Autism varies in its degree of severity among individuals.

Autism is the common term for a range of disabilities medically classified as Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD). Autism/PDD is characterized by qualitative differences in the development of cognitive, language, social or motor skills, and these are usually apparent before age three. Research evidence suggests that autism may result from an underlying difficulty with expressive movement and its regulation, severely challenging the individual to keep body movements, including sensory responses, in control.

There is no known single cause, but it is generally accepted that autism is caused by abnormalities in brain structure or function. Brain scans show differences in the shape and structure of the brain in autistic children vs. non-autistic children. Studies of twins and siblings suggest that there may be a genetic component. In addition, an increased frequency of occurrence is noted in people with genetic conditions such as fragile X syndrome and tuberous sclerosis.

Autism is a spectrum disorder. The symptoms and characteristics of autism can present themselves in a wide variety of combinations, from mild to severe. Autism is defined by a certain set of behaviors, but children and adults can exhibit any combination of the behaviors in any degree of severity. Two children with autism can act very differently from one another and have varying skills. The list of symptoms and behaviors associated with autism is long, and each affected person expresses his or her own combination of these behaviors.

Autism is a disorder that appears in early childhood, causing delays in many basic areas of development such as learning to talk and interact with others. The symptoms of autism vary widely, as does the impact of the disorder: some autistic children have only mild impairments, while others have more obstacles to overcome.

Many children with autism engage in repetitive movements such as rocking and twirling, or in self-abusive behavior such as biting or head-banging. They also tend to start speaking later than other children and may refer to themselves by name instead of “I” or “me.” Children with autism don’t know how to play interactively with other children. Some speak in a sing-song voice about a narrow range of favorite topics, with little regard for the interests of the person to whom they are speaking.

Communication is usually severely impaired in autistic persons. What the individual understands (receptive language) as well as what is actually spoken by the individual (expressive language) is significantly delayed or nonexistent. Deficits in language comprehension include the inability to understand simple directions, questions, or commands.

People with a form of autism, called savantism, have exceptional skills in specific areas such as music, art, and numbers. People with savantism are able to perform these skills without lessons or practice.