“Autism. More often than you think »

Under this slogan, European organizations helping people with autism will celebrate the World Autism Awareness Day on April 2. The problem of pervasive developmental disorders, including autism, affects 1% of the entire population, regardless of race, place of residence, and economic status. It is estimated that 5 million people with autism live in Europe. Don’t be green about autism. April 2, be blue. Find out more!

Autism – What Is It?

Autism is one of the so-called pervasive developmental disorders. This means that it affects the functioning and development of the child in all areas. Autism causes difficulties in dealing with other people, communicating with others, and a lack of flexibility in thinking and behavior. The symptoms may be very severe or very subtle. For example, autism can be experienced by a person who is completely speechless, but also one who speaks a lot and relatively well, yet commits a lot of awkwardness and blunder because the subtleties of speech are too difficult for them. This is why we currently use the term autism spectrum disorder more than autism.

What is the cause of autism?

Despite hundreds of thousands of studies, we do not know what causes autism. It is currently believed to be a neurobiological disorder of a child’s development with a genetic basis. But there isn’t one gene, or even a group of genes, that is responsible for autism. There are also no genetic tests or other laboratory tests to diagnose it. The only proven method of diagnosing autistic spectrum disorders in the world is to conduct a very detailed interview with the parents about the current development of the child and its careful observation. Both the interview and the observation of the child should be carried out by an experienced team of specialists.

Is it true that more and more people in the world suffer from autism?

Yes. Autism is much more common than we think. Back in the 90s, autism was considered a relatively rare disorder of child development, affecting 4 out of 10000 children. Currently, this is not the case. In some countries, statistics show that 1 in 88 people has autism. It is precisely because for several years we have been observing a significant increase in the number of people suffering from autism, the United Nations has recognized autism as one of the most serious problems of humanity, next to cancer, diabetes and AIDS. And that is why all over the world, also in Poland, there are activities aimed at improving the society’s knowledge of autism spectrum disorders and the symptoms occurring, but also at improving the system of diagnosis and care for this group of people.

Why does autism affect more and more people?

There are various hypotheses about this. The broadly understood environmental factors, including those that cause more and more people to suffer from various types of allergies or diabetes. However, research also shows that parenthood is becoming more and more late, and more and more complications are related to delivery. But when talking about the increase in autism cases, one should also take into account better and better developed diagnostic criteria, our increasing knowledge about autism, its symptoms, including subtle ones, a certain specificity of the development of this developmental disorder, which allows for better and more accurate results. diagnosing.

Are any specific groups of children at risk of autism?

Yes. Many studies show that there is an increased risk of developing autism in the following cases:

– children whose older siblings, one of the parents, someone from the extended family are already diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders;

– premature babies, especially those with a birth weight below 1500 grams;

– children from pregnancy and childbirth with complications;

– children with delayed sensorimotor development;

– children with features indicative of genetic disorders.

But of course the groups mentioned above do not cover all autism cases.

When can the first symptoms of autism be noticed in a child?

In fact, the first symptoms of autism can already be seen in a few month old babies, in some cases even in the first six months of their lives. Of course, we do not diagnose autism then, but we can determine whether the functioning of the child raises concerns or whether its development should be constantly monitored. Or maybe it is worth working with the child a little to develop key skills for communication and the development of relationships with other skills? Parents should be advised by a properly prepared specialist.

How is diagnosis available in Poland?

Although the age of diagnosing autistic spectrum disorders is constantly decreasing, children aged 4-6 are still most often diagnosed in Poland. This is due to several reasons. First, parents are often reassured that children develop at different rates, which is true of course, but in the case of autism it often leads to the first disturbing symptoms being ignored. Second, there is still a very low level of knowledge in society about the symptoms of autism, especially the earliest and subtle ones. Thirdly, there is a lack of properly prepared specialists – psychiatrists, neurologists, paediatricians, psychologists, educators – who can observe and properly interpret the symptoms in young children. Hence, even if a parent notices the child’s disturbing behavior, he usually has to wait several to several months in the queue for the diagnosis.

Does autism only affect children?

Both children and adults suffer from the autism spectrum disorders. Autism doesn’t end in childhood. It lasts a lifetime. But you have to remember that in order to diagnose autism, the first disturbing symptoms must appear in a child before the child turns 3 years old. Therefore, it is not that someone who has developed absolutely normal and has done well until the age of 15 or 30 can suddenly develop autism. Yes, there are cases of diagnosing autistic spectrum disorders at a later age, but most often it happens when the symptoms are initially very subtle, mildly intense, and the child sometimes for years, with great effort, but still copes with the demands. People come for diagnosis when they no longer cope at school or at work, most often due to the ever increasing requirements for social skills. This is why many people who are diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome (also part of the autistic spectrum disorder) are not diagnosed until their teenage years or even later.

Can You Grow Out of Autism?

It is impossible to outgrow autism. Autism lasts a lifetime. However, both scientific research and the experience of practitioners clearly show that the earlier the diagnosis is made and the sooner the therapy is started, the better the child’s functioning is likely to improve. This is why in recent years it has been said that about 10-15% of children diagnosed early and provided with appropriate therapeutic care have a chance to improve their functioning, which is equivalent to a cure.

What are adults with autism?

The spectrum of autistic disorders is very different, as is the spectrum itself. On the one hand, these are people who are deeply disturbed, do not speak, with very difficult behaviors, require constant care, and on the other hand, they are people with mild forms of autistic spectrum disorders who work, have families, but also have a lot of difficulties in everyday life, which we, also those who work and have families, never experience. Little is said about this group of highly functioning people with autism and hence they are hardly present in the social consciousness. It is worth emphasizing that good therapy can reduce the difficulties resulting from autism. What we do at the SYNAPSIS Foundation are activities aimed at reducing the degree of disability of children in the future, when they become adults.

What should worry parents about the child’s behavior?

Parents who notice any of the following symptoms in their child should contact their GP or pediatrician. He will refer them to a specialist who will examine the child and suggest what to do next.

If a child at the end of the first year of life:

– does not make eye contact with you or the contact is very brief;

– does not react when you call them by their name, sometimes they seem deaf, and sometimes they hear very soft sounds (e.g. a rustle of a candy being rolled up from a wrapper).

If the child is not babbling by the age of 12 months and uttering individual words by the age of 16 months, or if the development of speech and other forms of communication shows stagnation or regression (e.g. the child stops babbling, uttering words or sentences);

If a child aged 18 months:

– does not use his index finger to show you something that interested them;

– is not interested in other children (other people);

– does not play “pretend” – does not pretend, for example, to make tea, clean, etc .;

– he often wags his hands around the eyes, sways in a stereotypical way, is sensitive to sounds, smells, types of materials and surfaces;

– reacts violently to changes in his environment and daily routine;

it could be AUTISM!