4/5/05
Autism

Autism is the fastest growing developmental disability in young children. It can be devastating to families, but help is available through early diagnosis and intervention.

An estimated 1.5 million Americans have autism spectrum disorder, and incidences of the disorder are growing at a rate of 10 to 17 percent per year. Glen Aylward, Ph.D., professor of pediatrics at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield, says one reason for the increase in autism is that the medical profession is getting better at diagnosing it. He describes the disorder:

SOUND BITE: "Autism is a neural developmental disorder that is characterized by impairment in three major areas. One is communication. The second is social interaction. And the third is in terms of behavior, more specifically, repetitive stereotypic restrictive types of behaviors."

Aylward says the majority of autism cases have a genetic base, but some cases may be influenced by toxins in the environment. The disorder is four times more prevalent in boys than girls. Autism typically becomes apparent by age 2 or 3. Symptoms in the child include little or no eye contact, severe language deficits, showing distress for no apparent reason, too much or too little physical activity, and difficulty mixing with others. Although there is no cure for autism, early identification, intervention and medications can help.

SOUND BITE: "The applied behavior analysis, which involves communication skills, development of social interactive skills and elimination of more stereotypical repetitive behaviors, is probably the most tried and true intervention at this time. It is very intensive for example for a very young child, you are talking about 20 to 25 hours per week of intervention."

Parents of young children who have symptoms of autism should make an appointment with their primary care physician or pediatrician for evaluation. If autism is diagnosed, they may be referred to a pediatric developmental and behavioral specialist for treatment.