What is autism?

Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition which is usually diagnosed in the first 3 years of life.
Generally parents become concerned when their child has delays in speech development,
limited social relatedness, and restricted interests and activities. The child may avoid direct eye
contact and exhibit odd behaviors such as focusing on parts of objects (e.g. the spinning wheel
of a toy car). There may be unusual motor movements such as hand flapping, self stimulation or
walking on toes.

Although the cause of autism is unknown, it is generally believed that etiology may be due to
multiple factors. Many genetic, environmental, metabolic and neurological conditions that affect
the normal functioning of the brain are being researched. The diagnosis of autism requires
disturbances in each of three domains: (1) social relatedness, (2) communication/play, and (3)
restricted interests and activities.

Treatment planning is complex since each child has different strengths and deficits. Evidence
that earlier detection and provision of services improves long term prognosis makes early
diagnosis particularly important to improve the child’s adaptive skills and future functioning. The
diverse expression of these disorders both across and within individuals presents particular
challenges for clinical diagnosis and treatment.