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2007-03-28 08:16:11 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Health Diseases & Conditions Other - Diseases

4 answers

Autism is a brain disorder that often interferes with a person's ability to communicate with and relate to others.

Signs of autism almost always develop before a child is 3 years old, although the condition is sometimes not diagnosed until later. Typically, parents first become concerned when they notice that their toddler does not begin to talk or does not respond and interact like other children of the same age. Toddlers with autism do not usually develop speech normally and may seem to be deaf although hearing tests are normal.

Autism also affects how a child perceives and processes sensory information.

The severity of autism varies. Some individuals need assistance in almost all aspects of their daily lives, while others are able to function at a very high level and can even attend school in a regular classroom. While this is a lifelong condition that typically results in some degree of social isolation, treatment can make a major difference in the lives of people with autism. Early diagnosis and comprehensive treatment has resulted in increasing numbers of people with autism being able to live independently as adults..

What causes autism?
Autism tends to run in families, suggesting a genetic link. Because people with autism can be vastly different, scientists suspect a number of genes are responsible. Ongoing research is targeted at pinpointing these genes. Some experts also believe that environmental factors may play a part in causing autism, although scientists have studied several factors, including vaccines, and have yet to identify such a cause.

Brain scans of people with autism have shown abnormalities in several areas of the brain, including those responsible for emotion and social relations. Other studies suggest that people with autism have high levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, a chemical that sends messages in the brain. However, these findings are preliminary, and ongoing studies seek to explain the brain and autism.1

What are the symptoms?
All people with autism have difficulty with social interactions and relationships. Parents often describe their child with autism as preferring to play alone and making little eye contact with other people. Other symptoms of autism include:

Difficulties with verbal and nonverbal communication. Language development in children with autism is almost always delayed.
Limited, repetitive, and overused (stereotyped) patterns of behavior, interests, and play. Many typical behaviors-such as repetitive body rocking, unusual attachments to objects, and holding fast to routines and rituals-are driven by the need for sameness and resistance to change.
There is no “typical” person with autism. Although autism is defined by the above characteristics, people with autism can have many different combinations of behaviors in mild to severe forms.

Do any other conditions occur with autism?
Although it is difficult to determine, studies show that below-normal intelligence occurs in about 70% of children with autism.2 Teenagers with autism often become depressed and have increased anxiety, especially if they have average or above-average intelligence. In addition, about a third of children with autism develop a seizure disorder (such as epilepsy) by their teen years.3

How is autism diagnosed?
Your health professional will use diagnostic guidelines, established by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP), to determine whether your child has core symptoms.4 A child may also have hearing and other tests to make sure developmental delays aren't the result of another condition with similar symptoms. Early diagnosis and treatment of autism is important to make the most of the child's potential.

How is it treated?
Behavioral training, speech and occupational therapy, and parent education and support can often improve a child's problem behaviors, communication skills, and socialization. Medications are sometimes helpful as well. A child with autism responds best to a highly structured, specialized educational program tailored to his or her individual needs. However, specific treatment varies depending on the range of individual symptoms, which can combine in many different ways and change over time.

2007-03-28 08:20:04 · answer #1 · answered by Krystal 3 · 1 0

It is spelled autism.

A mental disorder characterized by severely abnormal development of social interaction and verbal and nonverbal communication skills. Affected individuals may adhere to inflexible, nonfunctional rituals or routine. They may become upset with even trivial changes in their environment. They often have a limited range of interests but may become preoccupied with a narrow range of subjects or activities. They appear unable to understand others' feelings and often have poor eye contact with others. Unpredictable mood swings may occur. Many demonstrate stereotypical motor mannerisms such as hand or finger flapping, body rocking, or dipping. The disorder is probably caused by organically based central nervous system dysfunction, especially in the ability to process social or emotional information or language.

2007-03-30 06:20:20 · answer #2 · answered by Chet 5 · 0 0

Autism is a "disease" or "disability which makes it hard for someone to communicate with others. Often they make funny faces and have difficulty or no ability to talk. Are often refered to as "retarded people"

2007-03-28 08:19:11 · answer #3 · answered by Clay H 3 · 0 0

i think you mean autism.
What Does Autism Mean?
Autism (say: aw-tih-zum) causes kids to experience the world differently from the way most other kids do. It's hard for kids with autism to talk with other people and express themselves using words. Kids who have autism usually keep to themselves and many can't communicate without special help.

They also may react to what's going on around them in unusual ways. Normal sounds may really bother someone with autism — so much so that the person covers his or her ears. Being touched, even in a gentle way, may feel uncomfortable.

Kids with autism often can't make connections that other kids make easily. For example, when someone smiles, you know the smiling person is happy or being friendly. But a kid with autism may have trouble connecting that smile with the person's happy feelings.

A kid who has autism also has trouble linking words with their meanings. Imagine trying to understand what your mom is saying if you didn't know what her words really mean. It is doubly frustrating then if a kid can't come up with the right words to express his or her own thoughts.

Autism causes kids to act in unusual ways. They might flap their hands, say certain words over and over, have temper tantrums, or play only with one particular toy. Most kids with autism don't like changes in routines. They like to stay on a schedule that is always the same. They also may insist that their toys or other objects be arranged a certain way and get upset if these items are moved or disturbed.

If someone has autism, his or her brain has trouble with an important job: making sense of the world. Every day, your brain interprets the sights, sounds, smells, and other sensations that you experience. If your brain couldn't help you understand these things, you would have trouble functioning, talking, going to school, and doing other everyday stuff. Kids can be mildly affected by autism, so that they only have a little trouble in life, or they can be very affected, so that they need a lot of help.

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.

The brain contains over 100 billion nerve cells called neurons (say: nur-ahns). Each neuron may have hundreds or thousands of connections to other nerve cells in the brain and body. The connections (which are made by releasing neurotransmitters) let different neurons in different areas of the brain — areas that help you see, feel, move, remember, and much more — work together.

For some reason, some of the cells and connections in the brain of a kid with autism — especially those that affect communication, emotions, and senses — don't develop properly or get damaged. Scientists are still trying to understand how and why this happens.

What Do Doctors Do?
Figuring out if a kid has autism can be difficult. A parent is usually the first to suspect that something is wrong. Maybe the kid is old enough to speak but doesn't, doesn't seem interested in people, or behaves in other unusual ways. But autism isn't the only problem that can cause these kinds of symptoms. For example, kids who have hearing problems may have trouble speaking, too.

Usually, lab tests and other medical tests are normal in kids with autism, but doctors may do them to make sure the kid doesn't have other problems. These medical tests may include blood and urine tests, a hearing exam, an EEG (a test to measure brain waves), and an MRI (a picture that shows the structure of the brain). Intelligence (IQ) tests also may be done.

Often, specialists work together as a team to figure out what is wrong. The team might include a pediatrician, a pediatric neurologist, a pediatric developmentalist, a child psychiatrist, a child psychologist, speech and language therapists, and others. The team members study how the child plays, learns, communicates, and behaves. The team listens carefully to what parents have noticed, too. Using the information they've gathered, doctors can decide whether a child has autism or another problem.

How Is Autism Treated?
There is no cure for autism, but doctors, therapists, and special teachers can help kids with autism overcome or adjust to many difficulties. The earlier a kid starts treatment for autism, the better.

Different kids need different kinds of help, but learning how to communicate is always an important first step. Spoken language can be hard for kids with autism to learn. Most understand words better by seeing them, so therapists teach them how to communicate by pointing or using pictures or sign language. That makes learning other things easier, and eventually, many kids with autism learn to talk.

Therapists also help kids learn social skills, such as how to greet people, wait for a turn, and follow directions. Some kids need special help with living skills (like brushing teeth or making a bed). Others have trouble sitting still or controlling their tempers and need therapy to help them control their behavior. Some kids take medications to help their moods and behavior, but there's no medicine for autism.

Students with mild autism sometimes can go to regular school. But most kids with autism need calmer, more orderly surroundings. They also need teachers trained to understand the problems they have with communicating and learning. They may learn at home or in special classes at public or private schools.

Living With Autism
Some kids with mild autism will grow up and be able to live on their own. Those with more serious problems will always need some kind of help. But all kids with autism have brighter futures when they have the support and understanding of doctors, teachers, caregivers, parents, brothers, sisters, and friends.

2007-03-28 10:06:38 · answer #4 · answered by Cutie 4 · 0 0

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