| Diagnosing Autism in Children: A Tricky Judgement | | | | explain their child's behavioral and other tendencies |
| Autism is a neurological disorder affecting a child's | | | | to the doctor. Based on it, a pediatrician will be |
| behavior, perception and communication skills. Until | | | | able to decide whether the child is within normal |
| the middle of 20th century, this disorder had no | | | | parameters or not. |
| name. Till today researchers have not been able | | | | Since there is no set of rules which indicate |
| to find a specific cure for Autism. The main | | | | autism in children, the only way is to look at |
| reason being, this condition has varied symptoms | | | | various possibilities. If a child has problem |
| for varied individuals. | | | | communicating or shows lack of speech |
| There is no accurate measure to detect autistic | | | | development, it could be due to deafness. A lack |
| conditions in a child. Thus, diagnosing autism in | | | | of interest in toys, self-destructive behavior or |
| children is a complex problem. | | | | violent nature can also be a sign of mental |
| Early Diagnosis Checklist | | | | retardation. Thus, all behavioral and physical |
| To the relief of many parents, scientist and | | | | disorders do not point towards Autism. |
| doctors have been able to nail down specific | | | | Early diagnosis of autism in children can help in a |
| behavior patterns that can help in diagnosing | | | | much more effective treatment and reduction in |
| autism in children as young as 18 months. The | | | | its symptoms. |
| National Institute of Child Health & Human | | | | Seek Help from Specialists |
| Development considers following behaviors as | | | | Specialists are people trained in treating autism. |
| signs of Autism in children: | | | | They have a variety of instruments that help in |
| - Does not babble by 12 months | | | | making accurate analysis. Specialists hold a series |
| - Does not respond to gestures | | | | of tests on the autistic child; hold structured |
| - Unable to utter single words by 16 months | | | | interviews with parents and so on. Rating scales |
| - Loss of language at an older age | | | | and developmental inventories help make |
| - Lack of sociability | | | | predictions about a child's socialization and coping |
| Do not panic if your child shows some of these | | | | up skills. There are a few I.Q. tests that |
| characteristics; instead get further tests done by | | | | determine a child's intelligence based on |
| a neurologist, psychologist and other professionals. | | | | standardized criteria. |
| Consult a Pediatrician | | | | Specialists use videos and photos to compare the |
| A pediatrician understands a child's behavioral and | | | | behavior of the child from the time when first |
| physical needs best. They are well aware of the | | | | signs were shown till the present age. They also |
| various developmental stages and can make | | | | help families deal with the situation and design |
| judgment based on that. Parents must explicitly | | | | specialized therapies to treat autism in children. |