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Autism is a developmental disorder that results in impaired thinking, feeling, and social functioning. This eMedTV article takes an in-depth look at autism, including information about characteristic behaviors, symptoms, and treatment.
Classical autism is just one of the five types of autism spectrum disorder. This section of the eMedTV library identifies the other types of autism spectrum disorder, such as Asperger syndrome and childhood disintegrative disorder.
While there are no known autism causes, recent studies suggest that some people are genetically predisposed. This eMedTV resource outlines some of the recent research into possible causes of autism.
Early signs of autism include difficulty making friends, an absence of imaginative play, and difficulty initiating a conversation. As this eMedTV article explains, these early signs of autism may be difficult to detect in mildly affected children.
Autism symptoms include communication problems, difficulties with social interaction, and repetitive behaviors or obsessive interests. This eMedTV site provides details about these and other autism symptoms.
Diagnosing autism often involves using a questionnaire to gather information about a child's development and behavior. This eMedTV article explains the behavior doctors look for when diagnosing autism.
While there is no single best treatment for autism, most experts agree that highly structured, specialized programs are often effective. This eMedTV site outlines various approaches to treatment for autism, including applied behavior analysis.
This eMedTV page offers examples of drugs used as autism medications, such as Prozac and Haldol. Autism medications are prescribed "off label," meaning that they haven't been approved by the FDA to treat autism.
Autism speech language therapy can be combined with occupational and physical therapies to improve communication in those with autism. As this eMedTV article explains, autism speech language therapy should include periodic, in-depth evaluations.
This portion of the eMedTV site identifies the general goals of autism education for children in various age groups. This article also contains questions parents should consider asking about their child's individual autism education program.
There is no cure for child autism, a brain disorder that affects the ability to think, communicate, and interact socially. This portion of the eMedTV archives provides an overview of child autism, including statistics on its frequency.
Language development in autistic children differs from that seen in children without autism. This eMedTV site addresses issues of language development in autistic children, such as problems with word and sentence meaning, intonation, and rhythm.
Autism in adults can create unique challenges for parents of an adult autistic. This eMedTV Web page offers advice for those dealing with autism in adults, including information about living arrangements and government programs.
At this point, no study offers definitive evidence of an association between autism and vaccinations. This eMedTV article provides an overview of studies of autism and vaccinations such as DTP and MMR vaccines.
Ongoing autism research includes imaging studies searching for brain abnormalities that could cause impaired social communication. This eMedTV resource provides details about several of the autism research studies currently under way.
Current autism statistics indicate that the disorder is more common than childhood cancer. This eMedTV article features a variety of autism statistics that may help the reader understand more about this developmental disorder.
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