Autism in Children
4min ReadAutism in Children – Familiarity with the symptoms of autism can have a significant impact on the early diagnosis of this disease and its treatment. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a type of neurodevelopmental conditions that causes difficulties in interaction and establishing social relationships, learning problems and repetitive behaviors. Autism spectrum disorder can be considered a neurological disorder that manifests itself in the early years of a child’s development, this disorder makes the brain of a person with autism unable to function properly in terms of social interaction and communication skills.
Autism, like eye color and skin color is with a person forever, and there is no definitive treatment for this disorder, but with the help and support of parents and others affected children can have a much better quality of life. Because autism is diagnosed more in males it is often seen as a male disease. In fact, the incidence of autism in boys is about 4 times higher than that of girls. However, this does not mean that autism does not occur in girls at all. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 0.66 percent of girls, or about 1 in 152 girls have autism.
The latest research shows that this disease does not have a specific cause, some of the factors that increase the risk of autism include:
• A first-degree family member suffering from autism
• Genetic mutations
• Fragile X syndrome and other genetic disorders
• Being born to older parents
• Low birth weight of the baby
• Metabolic imbalance
• Exposure to heavy metals and environmental toxins
• History of viral infections
• Taking valproic acid or thalidomide drugs during pregnancy
Both genetics and environment can play a role in a person developing autism.
Usually, the symptoms of autism are evident in early childhood, between ages of 12 and 24 months. However, sometimes its symptoms may appear earlier or later than this duration.
In general, the symptoms of autism are divided into two categories: first, problems related to communication and social interaction and second, restricted or repetitive patterns of behavior or activities.
Some common symptoms of autism that a person may show are as follows:
• Lack of maintaining eye contact
• Delayed speaking and communication skills
• Strong dependence or attachment on life routines
• Intense discomfort over relatively minor changes
• Unusual reactions to sounds, smells, sights and touch
• Failure to understand the feelings and emotional states of others
• Obsessive focus on objects and interests
• Repetitive and stereotyped behaviors
• Lack of response to their name up to 12 months
• Not pointing to distant objects until 14 months
Autism in child has no cure, but with the help of a series of treatment methods and medical considerations, it is possible to improve feelings or reduce symptoms in a person.
Most autism treatment methods include the following:
• Behavioral therapy:
with the help of behavioral therapy, it is possible to improve the interactions of autistic children by providing solutions to change the environment and life schedule of autistic children, because usually these children have problem expressing their needs and feelings. The therapist can recognize the hidden desires behind these children’s behaviors and help improve their lives.
• Play therapy:
it can improve social and emotional skills, expand different ways of playing with toys and connect them with other people.
• Occupational therapy:
To implement occupational therapy, the symptoms and severity of the disorder must be recognized. Intense activity for more than twenty minutes can help reduce repetitive behaviors, hyperactivity, and aggression in children with autism. In addition, it increases the general health of their body. For an autistic patient, the therapist considers exercises to simultaneously increase the level of coordination, strength, endurance, and body awareness.
• Physical therapy:
Some children with autism may experience mild to severe movement problems due to developmental delays. A physical therapist after a general evaluation and identification of the child’s movement problems provides a program to help fix or improve these problems.
• Speech therapy:
evaluating and treating speech and language disorders in autistic children, can help the patient’s social interactions.
• Massage:
the use of blankets and weighted clothing, and meditation techniques may also induce relaxation. However, the results of autism treatment approaches vary among individuals. Sometimes the use of these methods is very effective in some people but in others, it does not work at all. Usually, to treat these people a team of psychologists, counselors, rehabilitation specialists, speech therapy specialists, and psychiatrists need to work together.
It is very important to pay attention to the warning signs of disorders and diseases especially autism because in case of early diagnosis, you can use the relevant treatment options and solutions on time, which can greatly improve the symptoms of this disorder. Despite the progress of medical science, no laboratory tests and methods have been introduced to definitively diagnose autism, and examining the child’s behavior and taking history from parents helps a lot in this task. Therefore, if parents notice a delay in their child’s normal development or signs of this disorder, they must take the child to a specialist for a more detailed evaluation.
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