Autism, or autism spectrum disorder, refers to a range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication, as well as by unique strengths and differences. We now know that there is not one autism but many types, caused by different combinations of genetic and environmental influences.
The term “spectrum” reflects the wide variation in challenges and strengths possessed by each person with autism.
Autism’s most-obvious signs tend to appear between 2 and 3 years of age. In some cases, it can be diagnosed as early as 18 months. Some developmental delays associated with autism can be identified and addressed even earlier. Autism Speaks urges parents with concerns to seek evaluation without delay, as early intervention can improve outcomes.
Thank you very much Dr.Esraa T. Al-Azawee for the active participants
Experts are still uncertain about all the causes of autism. In all likelihood, there are multiple causes – rather than just one. It appears to be that a number of different circumstances — including environmental, biologic, and genetic factors – set the stage for autism and make a child more likely to have the disorder.
There is reason to believe that genes play a major role in the development of autism. It has been found that identical twins are more likely to both be affected than twins who are fraternal (not genetically identical). In a family with one autistic child, the chance of having another child with autism is about 5 percent – or one in 20 – much higher than in the normal population.
Sometimes, parents or other relatives of an autistic child have mild social impairments (such as repetitive behaviors and social or communication problems) that look very much like autism. Research also has found that some emotional disorders (such as manic depression) occur more often in families of a child with autism.
At least one group of researchers has found a link between an abnormal gene and autism. The gene may be just one of three to five or more genes that interact in some way to cause the condition. Scientists suspect that a faulty gene or genes might make a person more likely to develop autism when there are also other factors present, such as a chemical imbalance, viruses or chemicals, or a lack of oxygen at birth.
In a few cases, autistic behavior is caused by:
Rubella (German measles) in the pregnant motherTuberous sclerosis (a rare genetic disorder that causes benign tumors to grow in the brain as well as in other vital organs)Fragile X syndrome (the most common inherited form of intellectual disability)Encephalitis (brain inflammation)Untreated phenylketonuria (PKU) – when the body lacks an enzyme needed for normal metabolism.
I appreciate the above answer. The incidence of autism is still underestimated but in the last years we hear too much about this nauseated disease.
Autism is a complex neurobehavioral condition that includes impairments in social interaction and developmental language and communication skills combined with rigid, repetitive behaviors. Because of the range of symptoms, this condition is now called autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It covers a large spectrum of symptoms, skills, and levels of impairment. ASD ranges in severity from a handicap that somewhat limits an otherwise normal life to a devastating disability that may require institutional care.
Children with autism have trouble communicating. They have trouble understanding what other people think and feel. This makes it very hard for them to express themselves either with words or through gestures, facial expressions, and touch.
Dear Colleagues, Good Day,
"What are the symptoms of autism?
The symptoms of one person with autism can be very different from the symptoms of another person with autism. Health care providers think of autism as a spectrum disorder—which means that there is a range of similar features in different people with the disorder.1
One person with autism may have mild symptoms, while another may have more serious symptoms, but they both have autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Despite the range of possible symptoms, there are certain actions and behaviors that are common in ASD and could signal that a child is on the autism spectrum. Parents and caregivers who notice these "red flags" should speak to their child's health care provider about autism and screening the child for ASD.
In general, the main signs and symptoms of ASD relate to:
- Communication and interactions with other people
- Routines or repetitive behaviors, sometimes called stereotyped (pronounced STER-ee-uh-tahypt) behaviors",...
Please, see the attached website link for more details...
https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/autism/conditioninfo/symptoms
Esraa T. Al-Azawee has a good answer of the question an I recommend it
Dear Colleagues, Good Day,
"Life With Autism Spectrum Disorder
What Is Autism?
Autism is a wide range or spectrum of brain disorders that is usually noticed in young children. Autism is also referred to as Autism Spectrum Disorder or ASD. Autism decreases the individual's ability to communicate and relate emotionally to others. This disability may range from mild to severe. Autism occurs about four to five times more often in boys than girls.
Is Autism a Disease or a Disorder?
Autism is a disorder, not a disease. There are many brain disorders that fall into the autism category such as autistic disorder, childhood disintegrative disorder, pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified, and Asperger syndrome.
What Does “Spectrum” Mean?
“Spectrum” in autism spectrum disorder refers to the wide range of symptoms, skills, and severity of the disorder. The three most common disorders on the autism spectrum are autism, Asperger's syndrome, and pervasive developmental disorder- not otherwise specified.
Autism Symptoms
The following are common symptoms of autism, but non-autistic children may display some of these behaviors:
- Rocking, spinning, or other repeated movements
- Avoiding physical contact
- Avoiding eye contact
- Rocking, spinning, or other repeated movements
- Delayed speech development
- Repetitive speaking of words or short phrases
- Inability to cope with small changes in a daily routine
- Limited or no interactions with peers,"...
Please, go to the attached website link for more details...
https://www.onhealth.com/content/1/autism_spectrum_disorder
Dear Colleagues, Good Day,
Please, see the very interesting slide which is related to the thread and press on the attached website link to read the excellent article that entitled "Early Signs of Autism - Identifying the Autism Red Flags":
https://www.dealwithautism.com/forum/threads/early-signs-of-autism-identifying-the-autism-red-flags.621/
Dear Colleagues, Good Day,
"Scientists May Have Found The Root Cause Of Autism
Scientists think they've found out what could be at the root of autism and, no, it's not vaccines. According to a new study, it could be caused by having too many brain connections called synapses.
"An increased number of synapses creates miscommunication among neurons in the developing brain that correlates with impairments in learning, although we don’t know how,” senior author Azad Bonni, head of the Department of Neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, explained in a statement.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental condition affecting one in 68 people in the United States. It's generally understood that there is a genetic aspect to ASD (it often runs in families), though environmental triggers may also play a role.
Several genes have been linked to people with autism. Six of these are called ubiquitin ligases and they're responsible for attaching molecular tags called ubiquitins to proteins. Think of these genes as managers, telling their employees (the rest of the cell) how to handle the tagged proteins. Should they be discarded? Should they be taken to another part of the cell?
Some experts believe that individuals with autism have a gene mutation preventing one of their ubiquitin ligases from working correctly. To find out how and why this might be, the scientists at Washington University removed RNF8 (a ubiquitin gene) in neurons in the cerebellum (an area of the brain affected by autism) of young mice. The mice missing the gene developed an excess of synapses, which in turn affected their ability to learn.
Those mice had 50 percent more synapses than their peers, who had their RNF8 gene intact. The scientists then measured the electrical signal in the neurons and found that it was twice as strong compared to those with a normal functioning cell.
ASD affects language, attention, and movement; skills the cerebellum plays an essential role in. To see if the test mice had lower motor skills (a common symptom in people with autism), the researchers trained the mice to associate a puff of air to the eye with a blinking light. One week later, the control group avoided the irritation caused by the puff of air by closing their eyes 75 percent of the time. The test group only did so one-third of the time.
The scientists point out that a mouse that doesn’t shut its eyes when trained doesn’t quite equate to a human with autism (after all, the wiring of autistic brains is highly individualized), and more work is needed to verify the hypothesis. But it does reveal an interesting association between synapses and behavior that could one day lead to treatments."
Please, see the source:
http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/scientists-may-have-found-the-root-cause-of-autism/
Autism is a spectrum of closely related disorders with a shared core of symptoms. Autism spectrum disorder appears in infancy and early childhood, causing delays in many basic areas of development, such as learning to talk, play, and interact with others.
The signs and symptoms of autism vary widely, as do its effects. Some children with autism have only mild impairments, while others have more obstacles to overcome. However, every child on the autism spectrum has problems, at least to some degree, in the following three areas:
Communicating verbally and non-verbally
Relating to others and the world around them
Thinking and behaving flexibly
There are different opinions among doctors, parents, and experts about what causes autism and how best to treat it. There is one fact, however, that everyone agrees on: early and intensive intervention helps. For children at risk and children who show early signs, it can make all the difference.
The basic features of autism appear before 3 years of age. It is a behavioral syndrome with the following three main features.
1. Qualitative disability of interpersonal interaction
2. Significant abnormality in communication or impairment of its development
3. Significant localization of scope of activities and interests
Delayed development of language, difficulty of emotional exchanges in interpersonal way, repeating indifference at all, repetitive behavior, subjects of behavioral style and interests are extremely narrow, stereotypically strange, hands Move it fluttering, become extremely self-centered thinking, arrange things in order and geometrically and orderly, with paranoia, with other harmful acts due to stress etc.
The symptoms of autism are considerably different among people, and the above characteristics may not apply in some cases.
Hi
I think that autism is a complex neural behavioral condition.
regards
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Medicine
- Epi
- Age Groups
- Children