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Autism is a diagnosis that sounds daunting to any parent. The disease is quite common. Pathology of the psyche is clearly manifested at an early age. In this case, one speaks of early childhood autism. Sick children are isolated from society, they attend specialized educational institutions.
Autism – what is it?
Autism is a developmental disorder with a deficit in the sphere of communication and emotions. A person with this disease, as it were, is inside himself. He does not direct his speech, gestures, energy to other people. His actions have no social meaning. The disease is diagnosed in children 3-5 years old. Rarely, autism is first diagnosed in adolescents and adults. If this happens, it means that the disease has a very mild course.
Causes of autism in children
Usually in most cases of the disease presented, it is not associated with serious brain damage. In some cases, autism is due to congenital rubella, as well as against the background of phenylketonuria, cytomegalovirus infection, or the dangerous fragile X syndrome. Serious evidence has also been found that fully confirms the important role of genetic changes in the development of the disease.
It has been proven that parents of a child with an autistic disorder have a 50-70 times higher risk of having a subsequent child with similar developmental problems than usual. In special monozygotic twins, the concordance of this syndrome is no less high.
Numerous studies that have been conducted among families of patients with autism suggest that several regions of genes are potential targets. These include neurotransmitter receptors associated with special coding and important structural control of the nervous system. The role of external factors, such as vaccination and all kinds of diets, has not been proven by specialists to date. In many ways, the basis of the pathogenesis of autistic disorders are violations of the functions and structure of the brain.
As a rule, in most children with autism, the ventricles of the brain are greatly enlarged. Some babies have a dangerous hypoplasia of the cerebellar vermis, and you can also detect various anomalies in the nuclei of an important brain stem.
In addition, a parallel is drawn between autism and certain diseases:
Rubella transferred during pregnancy.
Cerebral palsy.
Tuberous sclerosis.
Obese women are more likely to have children with autism than normal weight women.
Chromosome mutations.
These pathologies can negatively affect the development of the child’s brain and lead to the onset of autism.
Features of perception of the world by a child with autism
A child cannot collect a complete picture of the world in his head. He sees a person as unconnected limbs, hands, mouth and other parts of the body. The child cannot understand whether an object is animate in front of him or not. All irritants coming from the external environment cause discomfort in the baby. This applies to light, sound, tactile contact. Therefore, the child goes into his own world, inside himself.
Signs of autism in a child
Scientists have identified 4 main features that characterize autism as a disease:
Violation of social behavior.
Violation of the communicative sphere.
stereotypical behavior.
Early symptoms of the disease that occur in children under 3 years of age.
Violation of social interaction is manifested by the following symptoms:
The child avoids eye-to-eye contact. His gaze is directed as if through a person.
The facial expressions of the child are not expressive, do not correspond to the situation. The child does not laugh when someone tries to make him laugh, but may burst into laughter for no reason. The child’s face resembles a mask, from time to time it is distorted by grimaces.
The child rarely uses gestures. He uses gestures only to indicate his own needs. Healthy children try to draw their parents’ attention to interesting objects by pointing to them. Autists don’t do that.
The child cannot understand the emotions of other people. Healthy children are able to determine the emotions of a person by his look, facial expression, eyes. Children with autism do not have this ability.
The child shows no interest in peers. He does not take part in their games, he strives to be left alone, as he is immersed in his world. Autistic children do not perceive other children, equating them to inanimate objects.
Difficulties with imagination and distribution of social roles. Healthy children can put the doll to bed, bring a toy car to the garage. Children with autism do not perceive the toy as a solid object. They can just spin the wheel of the car for several hours.
The child does not respond to the emotional manifestations of close relatives. For a long time it was believed that autistic people do not experience emotional attachment to their mother and father at all. However, recent studies have found that the departure of the mother still causes them some anxiety. However, when she is around, the child will not show any emotions towards her. He will not cry or call for his mother after her departure, but his anxiety rises at such moments. However, he will not take any action to return it. It’s impossible to tell if he’s feeling something.
Violation of the communicative sphere
Violation of the communicative sphere is manifested by the following symptoms:
The speech development of the child is difficult, sometimes speech is absent for a long time. If the disease has a severe course, then children do not master speech. They use a few words that are meant to indicate their needs. The child may be asked to sleep or indicate that he is hungry. Other children have speech skills, but it is difficult to call such phrases meaningful. For a long time, children may repeat the same set of words that make no sense. Children speak about themselves in the third person, for example, “Masha wants to sleep.”
Speech is abnormal. It is characterized by echolalia and repetitions. For example, an adult asks him: “Are you going to sleep?”. To which the child replies: “Are you going to sleep?”. Speech may be too loud or too quiet. He does not respond to his own name. In the life of every healthy child, the so-called “question period” begins. Autistic people either do not go through this period at all, or it comes late for them. They are not interested in their parents about the structure of the world around them. Children can ask adults questions, but they are devoid of practical meaning, often repeated.
stereotypical behavior
Signs that characterize stereotypical behavior:
A child can perform the same action for a long time, for example, lay out the details of the designer by color, build a tower. It is problematic to reorganize it to another type of activity.
Strict implementation of regime moments. A child with autism will only feel comfortable in a familiar environment. Changing the daily routine, leaving the usual route, rearranging furniture or things in the room – all this can cause increased isolation or aggression.
Repetition of movements that do not make sense. If a child is frightened of something or finds himself in an unusual situation for him, he will begin to stimulate himself on his own. This can be expressed in snapping fingers, clapping hands and other similar movements.
Toddlers are often haunted by fears, obsessive movements. If the child is afraid, then he becomes aggressive. Moreover, this feeling is manifested both in relation to the surrounding people, and to oneself.
Early symptoms of the disease that occur in children under 3 years of age
Autism manifests itself at an early age. Even before the first birthday, parents may notice that their child does not smile, does not respond to his name, behaves strangely. Children are not as mobile as their peers, give an inadequate response in various situations.
Note to parents
Noticing that someone else’s baby throws a tantrum, there is no need to show pronounced bewilderment. It is likely that the child has autism. You need to be tactful in such situations.
Tips for parents:
You need to offer your help and try to encourage the parents of a special child.
All objects that surround children with autism must be safe.
You need to stay as calm as possible.
Parents of sick children should not face the bewilderment of the surrounding people, you need to show sympathy and attention towards them.
Neither parents nor children should be criticized.
Do not look at the child in hysterics intently.
You should not make noise and draw the attention of strangers to the baby.
Parents of a sick child should not be rude.
Mental development of children with autism
In the vast majority of children with autism, the intellect is poorly developed. Mental retardation ranges from mild to moderate. This is due to defects in the development of the brain. In addition, learning is difficult for autistic people. Profound mental retardation is observed when autism is combined with other pathologies: with epilepsy, microcephaly, chromosomal mutations. If autism has a mild course, then the child’s intelligence remains normal, or may be above average.
A child can count well, draw, play music, but in other areas he often lags behind his peers. This is a feature of his intellectual development, which is selective.
The giftedness of an autist in a certain direction of activity is called savantism. Such children can repeat the most complex melody on the violin, having heard it once, or draw a picture, conveying all the semitones, although he saw it once. Often such children mentally add or multiply multi-digit numbers.
Asperger’s Syndrome
Asperger’s Syndrome is a type of autism that is characterized by a mild course of the disease. It appears at an older age.
Features of Asperger’s Syndrome:
The first manifestations of the disease will be noticed at the age of 7-10 years.
The intelligence of the child is developed normally.
The child’s speech is developed, but its intonation and volume may be impaired.
Often a person is fixated on some action or activity. He can tell the interlocutor a story that is not interesting to him. At the same time, he does not care about the listener’s reaction.
The movements of the patient seem awkward, and the postures are strange.
A person cannot come to a compromise, he does not know how to negotiate. Such people are self-centered.
People with Asperger’s syndrome study well, successfully graduate not only from secondary, but also from higher educational institutions. They start families, but for this they need the support of loved ones and the participation of parents in their upbringing.
Rett syndrome
This disease develops only in girls. It has a genetic basis, since it causes a violation in the X chromosome. If such mutations occur in a male fetus, then he dies in the womb. The disease occurs in one child in 10000.
Autism is deep, the girl will be completely immersed in herself. Other symptoms of the disorder:
At the age of up to 1,5 years (sometimes up to six months), the development of the child is slightly impaired.
After six months – 1,5 years, there is a slowdown in head growth.
The child loses the skills formed earlier reflexes, cannot purposefully move his hands.
The child performs monotonous movements with the upper limbs, which may resemble washing or shaking hands.
The motor activity of the child is reduced, coordination is impaired.
Language skills are lost.
These children are often diagnosed with underdevelopment of the brain and epilepsy. The prognosis is unfavorable, it is difficult to cope with movement disorders.
Autism Diagnosis
Most often, the abnormal behavior of the child is the first to be noticed by the parents. This happens most quickly in those families in which there are already children and there is a possibility of comparison. The sooner violations are noticed, the better. This will allow you to start treatment with the involvement of professionals. In the future, a child with autism will enter society more easily, he will have more chances to become a full-fledged member of society.
There are specialized tests that can identify children with autism. Parents must pass. The doctor also studies the behavior of the child in his usual environment.
Testing is carried out using the following methods:
ADI-R is a questionnaire for the diagnosis of autism.
ADOS is an observational scale for diagnosing autism.
CARS is the Childhood Autism Rating Scale.
ABC is a behavioral questionnaire for the diagnosis of autism.
ATEC is an autism score checklist.
CHAT is a questionnaire on autism in young children.
In addition, there are instrumental examination methods that allow you to clarify the diagnosis:
Ultrasound examination of the brain.
Electroencephalography, which allows to exclude foci of epileptic activity.
Hearing test by an audiologist. This study will rule out hearing loss as the cause of speech impairment.
To learn how to correctly perceive the behavior of a child with autism, parents must understand what is happening to him. The information in the table will help you with this.
How adults perceive the child’s behavior | Actually it’s not… | Explaining the child’s behavior |
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Autism treatment
Autism is an incurable disease. No such drug has been created, after drinking which the child would recover. In order for the patient to be able to socialize, it is required to deal with him every day, to create special conditions around the child. Only in this way can certain success be achieved. The family should work closely with teachers and psychologists.
The main directions that are implemented in the treatment of autism:
Autism is a characteristic of a child. He will not be able to perceive information in the same way as most people.
It is necessary to create such conditions for the child in which he can comfortably develop, live and study. The situation should not frighten him or force him to withdraw into himself.
A psychologist, teacher, speech therapist and other narrow specialists should work with the child.
Steps to be taken sequentially:
It is necessary to direct efforts to the formation of those skills that the child does not have. If he cannot establish contacts, then it is necessary to teach him to do this, if his speech suffers, then it should be corrected.
Efforts should be made to combat such manifestations as: aggression, obsession, fears, self-aggression, withdrawal into oneself.
The child must be taught to observe other people and imitate them.
The child needs to be taught to play, to take on social roles.
Efforts should be made to teach the baby to make contact with other people.
Correction of the child’s behavior is based on behaviorism. This is a separate branch of psychology. In the treatment of children with autism, ABA therapy is applicable. In this case, you need to observe the behavior and reactions of the baby. After that, certain incentives are selected. It all depends on the preferences of the individual child. It can be music, food, sounds, etc. All positive reactions that a child gives should be encouraged. This allows you to establish contact, as well as prevent unwanted reactions in the form of hysterical seizures and aggression.
Classes with a speech therapist are an obligatory direction in working with autists. Each sick child has certain speech problems, so it will not be possible to do without the help of a specialist. He teaches him to follow his intonation, pronounce sounds correctly, prepares for school.
Be sure to teach your child the skills of self-care and socialization. Children with autism do not have the motivation to communicate with other people, do not want to contact children, play with them. They are not fond of any kind of activity, it is difficult for them to perform hygiene skills. To instill them, teachers recommend using cards. They contain detailed instructions for action and their sequence: getting out of bed, brushing your teeth, combing your hair, etc.
Drugs are not used to treat autism. They are used only in cases where the destructive behavior of the child becomes an obstacle to his full development. It must be remembered that tantrums and even stereotypical actions are all an attempt to communicate with the world. It is bad if the child does not manifest himself in any way: he sits all day in one place and turns the wheel of the car. Psychotropic and sedatives should be given to autistic people only after agreement with the doctor.
There is an opinion that a gluten-free diet allows you to cope with autism, but this theory has not received scientific confirmation.
Parents who are concerned about the health of their baby often have to deal with charlatans. They offer stem cell treatment, micropolarization, nootropics. However, such therapy can be dangerous for a child with autism and harm his health.
Disorders that resemble autism
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This syndrome is often confused with autism. It is believed that every 3 children have it to one degree or another. Children with ADHD are restless, they find it difficult to learn, they have difficulty concentrating, and are very mobile. Some adults also suffer from this syndrome. It manifests itself in difficulties with remembering dates and events. It is difficult for such people to make informed decisions. It is necessary to diagnose such a violation as early as possible. Such patients are prescribed psychostimulants and sedatives. A good effect is given by classes with a psychologist.
Hearing loss. If a child does not hear well, then this is necessarily reflected in his speech development. Children may not respond to their name, they do not fulfill the requests of adults, they may seem spoiled and naughty. These symptoms are similar to those of autism, which is why it is important to test the hearing of babies with these disorders. Hearing loss can be managed through the use of hearing aids. Their use allows you to correct all existing deviations in development.
Schizophrenia. In past years, autism was considered a manifestation of schizophrenia. Modern science has good reason to believe that these are two different diseases that have nothing to do with each other. Schizophrenia manifests itself at an older age. In children younger than 5-7 years, this disease is never diagnosed. The disease develops slowly. Adults notice unmotivated fears in the child, he becomes obsessive, can withdraw into himself, talk to himself. Then there are signs of the disease, such as delusional thoughts and hallucinations. Schizophrenia is accompanied by short remissions with further deterioration of the disease. Treatment comes down to taking medications. These patients are managed by psychiatrists.
Autism should not be taken as a death sentence. The reasons for the development of the disease are unknown. There is no way to describe exactly how a sick child perceives the world. However, it has been reliably established that the early start of treatment and its competent organization allows such children to lead a normal life, study, work and create families. The main thing for a child with autism is the support of parents.