Autism Spectrum Disorder
By: Esther
What is autism?
Autism is a disorder that can affect communication, social, and behavioral challenges. It can make people do everyday things harder. The full name for autism is autism spectrum disorder. This disorder can be caused by environmental, biologic and genetic factors. This can affect girls and boys, but boys have a greater number in having autism. It affects the brain and makes interacting more difficult such as playing, talking, and hanging out.
Symptoms and Signs
Kids with autism can show....
having trouble expressing their needs using typical words or motions
Doesn't play “pretend” games (for example, not pretend to “feed” a doll)
repeat actions over and over again
have unusual reactions to the way things smell, taste, look, feel, or sound
- lose skills they once had (for example, stop saying words they were using)
How is it diagnosed
There are no blood tests, but doctors can detect autism at the age of 18 months or younger
Doctors look at the child’s behavior and development to make a diagnosis.
- It can take psychologists, neurologists, speech therapists, psychiatrists, and developmental pediatricians to diagnose autism.
Treatments
There are treatment services and that can improve the child’s development
Therapy is used to help the kids with speech, life skills, language, and more
- Different therapies like speech, behavioral, educational interventions, social skills, and medication therapy are used.
Can it be cured? and is it fatal?
Currently there is no cure for autism. But there are therapy sessions that the child can take. Autism can not kill a person, but one form of autism, Rett syndrome, can shorten a person’s life span.
Who can get the disorder?
Autism occurs in all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups
- Is almost five times more common among boys than among girls
picture from: www.dealwithautism.com
5 WAYS TO IMPROVE OR MAINTAIN YOUR HEALTH
- Get therapy to help with speech, interaction, and more
- Safe environment to live
- Participate in fun+meaningful activities
- Have the same basic health needs as everyone else, such as, balanced diet, plenty of water, and access to healthcare
- Find health care providers who are comfortable with a person who have autism.
10 OVERALL FACTS ABOUT AUTISM
- Autism is a disorder that can affect communication, social, and behavioral challenges
- Autism’s full name is Autism spectrum disorder
- Autism occurs in all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups
- Different therapies like speech, behavioral, educational interventions, social skills, and medication therapy are used.
- It can take psychologists, neurologists, speech therapists, psychiatrists, and developmental pediatricians to diagnose autism.
- It affects the brain and makes interacting more difficult
- It is almost five times more common among boys than among girls
- There is no medical detection or cure for autism
- There aren't any medical diagnosis, but there are behavior evaluations
- About 1% of the world population has autism spectrum disorder