Autism is a pervasive development disorder, it affects the way a person communicates and relates to other people. Children affected by this disorder have problems with the understanding of reality, interacting with people, places, events, sounds and lights, and they can also have problems with their imagination.

It is known that children affected by autism also have a limited range of interests, and about 75% of them can have mental retardation as well.

The symptoms of autism usually appear before a child is 3 years old, and last all his life. These symptoms can vary, they can be sometimes mild, or very severe.

There can appear difficulty with verbal communication, the inability to take part to a conversation even when the child has the ability to speak, difficulty to interact with people and with the surrounding reality, lack of imagination, inability to make friends and the preference to play alone.

We can also mention the preoccupation with unusual objects or parts of objects, an unreasonable insistence on following routines in detail, difficulty with non-verbal communication and repetitive body movements or patterns of behavior (for example head banging, flapping, spinning).

There exists a form of autism called savantism, and those affected by this illness have exceptional skills in specific areas like music, art, numbers, and are able to perform these skills without any practice.

A child could be suspected of autism, if he does not gesture, such as point or wave, does not babble or coo by 12 months of age, does not say single words by 16 months, or does not say two-word phrases on his own by 24 months. Another sign of autism, a sign that can appear at any age is the loss of any language and social skills.

The cause of autism in not known, but there are some possible factors that may lead to autism. Researchers believe that some people can have a genetic predisposition to autism, it is possible that this condition to be passed on from parents to children. It is possible that in some children, environmental factors to play a role too.

There are also other theories that say that antibodies inappropriately produced by the body’s immune system may attack the brain of children, causing autism. It was also said that it is possible that children with autism have abnormal timing of the growth of their brains.

It appeared the question if some vaccines can cause autism or other kind of behavioral disorder. Some parents of children with autism suspected that there is a link between measles, mumps, rubella vaccine and autism, but there wasn’t found any convincing evidence.

Autism is a disorder that appears 4 times more often in boys than in girls, and there are about 10 – 20 cases of autism to every 10,000 people.

In order to diagnose autism, if the symptoms are present, the doctor will perform a complete medical history and physical examination. Then, he will do some tests, like X-rays and blood tests, to find out if the symptoms are caused by a physical disorder.

If there isn’t found a physical disorder, the child is sent to a specialist in childhood development disorders, trained to diagnose and treat autism. The doctor analyzes the child’s level of development, speech and behavior, and often can ask the parents of the child, or other adults that are familiar with him about the symptoms that they found.

At this moment there is no cure for autism, but there is treatment that can reduce undesirable behaviors, and allow relatively normal development in the child.

Treatment can include medications in order to treat specific symptoms, like anxiety, hyperactivity and behavior that may result in injury, there are also necessary therapies that increase the child’s functional abilities, and strategies for supporting positive behavior. The special education is structured in order to satisfy the child’s unique educational needs.

It is known that autism cannot be prevented or cured. Early diagnosis and treatment is very important, in order to maximize the ability to speak, learn and function.

The severity of symptoms varies very much, and improves with intervention or as the children age. Some people with autism are able to have a normal or almost normal life, but it is known that many children with autism do not develop enough functional and communication skills to live independently as adults.

Researchers are looking for genes that may increase the risk of autism, and are studying abnormalities of the brain that can cause autism. Other studies are looking after possible biologic markers present at birth that may show a child has a risk for developing autism, or are analyzing how different brain regions develop and function in relation to each other and how can the alteration of this relationship cause symptoms of autism.

For more information about child autism please review http://www.autism-info-center.com/autism-symptoms.htm or even http://www.autism-info-center.com/autism-symptoms-checklist.htm