Archive for the 'Autism' Category

26
Jan

Qualitative impairment in social interaction

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Parents may recall a major event preceding the change, such as the birth of a sibling, the death of a grandparent, or a physical illness, but it is unclear whether the child was truly unimpaired prior to the event. As infants, autistic children may be content to lie in their cribs or playpens by themselves for hours without crying or making demands on parents, who feel initially that they have a good, easy-to-care-for baby. Other infants may be irritable and cry frequently.
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Qualitative impairment in social interaction
The social impairment in autistic disorder was viewed by Kanner as the core deficit in a syndrome manifesting with myriad features. However, research in the past few decades was directed toward elucidating the cognitive and language impairments, thought by many to be primary deficits leading to a secondary disturbance in social interaction.
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The nature of the social impairment in autism varies with the child’s developmental level, and its severity often decreases as the child gets older. From the first year of life, autistic children may show an impairment in reciprocal social interaction, as seen in a failure to cuddle, failure to raise their arms in anticipation of being picked up, lack of imitation of speech and gestures, failure to point to or show objects to others, and abnormality of eye gaze behavior. For example, although autistic children may occasionally make eye contact when giving an object to an adult, they rarely make eye contact with an adult when both child and adult are watching something of interest. That last deficit, known as a deficit in joint attention–a concept well developed by 2 years of age-may be indicative of an inability to understand that a focus of attention or perspective may be shared. Reciprocal games such as patty cake and peek-a-boo may not appear. Although some autistic children may seem indifferent or unresponsive toward their parents’ approaches or to separation from them, others may be anxious about separation and cling to their parents. Still others may be indiscriminately friendly and kiss strangers. Autistic children fail to develop social play with other children, often preferring solitary activities. The social aloofness seen in younger autistic children may decrease with age; nevertheless, although they may report an interest in making friendships, even the brightest children are hampered by an inability to understand many conventions of social interaction. That defect in social cognition may have its earliest roots in an inability to comprehend facial expressions or to express their own affective states vocally or by facial expression; those difficulties may underlie the autistic person’s inability to relate empathically to others, which would preclude normal social interaction. Social interactions of autistic children have been divided into three groups: aloof, passive, and active but odd. Aloof interactions are seen in the most withdrawn individuals, who are usually indifferent to or upset by social approaches and show minimal attachment behavior and affection. Passive interactions are seen in those who accept social approaches and who may play with other children if the play is structured for them. Children with active but odd interactions spontaneously approach others, but the interaction is often inappropriate and one-sided. It appears that level of cognitive functioning distinguishes the groups, with the aloof-reaction group being the most impaired and the group exhibiting active but odd interactions being the least impaired.

22
Jan

Perinatal factors. Autism

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A number of studies have shown an increased frequency of prenatal, perinatal, and neonatal complications in autistic children. The most frequently reported complications include bleeding after the first trimester and meconium staining of the amniotic fluid, an indication of fetal distress. One study found that maternal use of medication during pregnancy significantly differentiated autistic children from their normal siblings. Most studies finding an increased incidence of obstetrical complications in autistic children did not include a control group matched for I.Q., making it difficult to determine whether the complications were associated with autism or with mental retardation. One recent study comparing autistic children with their normal siblings, with normal children, and with I.Q.-matched controls found that delayed cry, respiratory distress syndrome, and neonatal anemia differentiated the autistic group from the control groups. Total obstetrical optimality scores (a rating based on a 61-item scale of prenatal, perinatal, and neonatal risk factors) were significantly lower for the autistic children than for all control groups.
DIAGNOSIS AND CLINICAL FEATURES
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The diagnosis of autistic disorder requires that a certain number of criteria in three symptom areas of social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and play, and repertoire of activities and interests be met. However, children meeting criteria for autistic disorder may appear very different from one another owing to differences in intellectual and language ability: Both the mute, aloof child and the one who asks grammatically perfect but inappropriately personal questions of strangers may be diagnosed with autistic disorder. The variability in phenomenology may lead to diagnostic errors, especially when children are at the extremes of intellectual functioning. In addition, certain behaviors characteristic of autism diminish with age, so that diagnoses made after childhood are not as reliable as those made in the preschool period, when many behaviors characteristic of autistic disorder are seen. The evaluation of autistic children requires a detailed prenatal and perinatal developmental, psychiatric, and medical history and a comprehensive medical examination that includes hearing, speech, and neurological evaluations. Neuropsychological testing, including I.Q. testing, should be performed. Because autism is believed to be a syndrome with multiple etiologies, it is important to rule out medical-genetic conditions that may underlie the disorder in a particular child.
Age at onset
Onset characteristically occurs before age 3 years and is marked by failure to develop language and failure to develop relatedness to parents–the most frequent reasons parents of autistic children contact health professionals. In addition, some parents fear that their child may be deaf, as the child may not respond when spoken to. Rarely, parents report that their child had normal social and language development but subsequently lost language and withdrew from social interaction.
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24
Dec

Genetic factors. Autism

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Results of family and twin studies have established the likelihood that genetic factors may influence or contribute to the development of autism. Three twin studies comparing concordance rates for autism in monozygotic and same-sex dizygotic twin pairs found concordance rates for autism in monozygotic pairs of 36, 50, and 89 percent, respectively, and a concordance of zero in dizygotic pairs. The finding of a high rate of cognitive deficits in the nonautistic monozygotic twins and an association with perinatal complications in their autistic cotwins led some investigators to hypothesize an inherited cognitive liability that, when accompanied by a perinatal insult, results in autism. Other researchers, however, believe that studies would show higher concordance rates if the nonautistic monozygotic cotwins with cognitive-linguistic and social deficits were considered part of an autistic spectrum; they suggest that it is autism, not a cognitive disorder, that is inherited.
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The fragile X syndrome is the second most important chromosomal etiology of mental retardation (after Down’s syndrome) and the most important known cause of inherited mental retardation, with a prevalence rate possibly as high as 1 in 1,000. Although variable in expression, the syndrome is often characterized by mild to severe mental retardation, with the majority of affected persons being moderately retarded; less severely affected persons may present with learning disabilities. A cognitive profile indicating weakness in nonverbal spatial processing tasks and short-term memory and relative strength in skills requiring verbal reasoning has been proposed. Physical abnormalities include macroorchidism, prognathism, and big ears in 80 percent of affected postpubertal males and hyperextensible joints, which may be indicative of a connective tissue dysplasia. Clumsiness, grand mal seizures, and hyperreflexia are among the neurological findings that may be present. Frequently seen behavioral problems include hyperactivity, attention deficits, impulsivity, and anxiety. Autistic features such as gaze aversion, stereotypies, echolalic speech, and narrow and perseverative interests are frequently observed.
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Since the association of autism and fragile X syndrome was first reported in 1982, estimates of the prevalence of fragile X syndrome in autistic populations have ranged from zero to 20 percent, with a pooled prevalence of 8 percent. Some investigators, finding low rates of the fragile X marker, believe the fragile X syndrome is associated with mental retardation, not with autism; others believe it is the most common known cause of autism. Differences in prevalence rates may have resulted from the manner in which autism was diagnosed and from ascertainment bias, for the use of institutionalized mentally retarded populations favored finding individuals with the fragile X syndrome. Differences among laboratories in the preparation of cell cultures, in the number of cells counted, and in the percentage of positive cells needed to make a diagnosis of fragile X syndrome may also account for the differences in prevalence rates. Although the association of fragile X syndrome with autism may be debated, there is a strong association of fragile X syndrome with social avoidance, irrespective of a diagnosis of autism. Research into that association may help elucidate the pathogenesis of autism.

18
Dec

Autism

Posted by Jammy B. | 1 Comment

Autistic disorder is the best known of the pervasive developmental disorders. It is characterized by sustained impairments in reciprocal social interactions, communication deviance, and restricted, stereotypical behavioral patterns. According to DSM-IV, abnormal functioning in the above areas must be present by age 3 years. More than two thirds of autistic persons function on a retarded level.
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EPIDEMIOLOGY
Prevalence
Most of the epidemiological surveys have found rates of 4 to 5 out of 10,000. However, recent studies have found higher rates, which may be attributed to more thorough case ascertainment, more uniform (or perhaps broader) diagnostic criteria, and, in some studies, earlier age at assessment.
Sex ratio
The higher incidence of autism in boys than in girls has been well documented, with ratios of 2.6 to 1 common and ratios up to 4 to 1 found in some studies. Girls are often more severely affected than boys, however, and on average score lower on intelligence tests.
ETIOLOGY
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Early clues to the biological basis of autism included the high rate of associated mental retardation, the 4 to 1 male-female ratio, the increased incidence of seizure disorders, and the recognition that medical and genetic conditions such as congenital rubella and untreated phenylketonuria could be associated with the syndrome. It is now believed that autistic disorder is a behavioral syndrome that can be caused or influenced by diverse conditions that adversely affect the central nervous system (CNS). The biological abnormalities underlying the disorder are currently unknown, and most cases do not show an association with a known genetic or medical disorder or with obvious CNS damage.