World Autistic Pride Day: Know the different signs of the condition

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurological development condition defined by communication and social interaction difficulties and the presence of repetitive or restricted behaviors or interests.

Although the symptoms configure the core of the disorder, the severity and presentation in each individual is variable, according to the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics (SBP).

The disorder is permanent, with no possibility of cure, but early diagnosis and intervention contribute to change the prognosis, alleviate symptoms and increase quality of life.

This Sunday (18), the world autistic pride day highlights the importance of individual and collective knowledge of the diverse characteristics of the autism spectrum, with the aim of reducing the stigma and prejudice associated with the condition.

Diagnosis and intervention

Different neurological development conditions and those associated with sociability difficulties encompass the autism spectrum disorder. The Ministry of Health points out that the signs of the child’s neurodevelopment can be perceived in the first months of life, with the diagnosis established between 2 and 3 years of age.

The word “spectrum” is adopted with the aim of including the different situations and presentations of autism, in levels ranging from mild to severe. In this context, the mistaken view that the condition manifests itself in the same way for all people is avoided.

“For the diagnosis to be closed, there are two criteria. A disorder in social interaction and communication associated with a restricted or repetitive pattern of behavior. This difficulty of the child interacting with other children, especially with peers – sometimes, they have a relatively good interaction with adults, but interaction with peers is impaired”, explains neuropediatrician Christiane Cobas, from Hospital Sírio-Libanês.

Among the conditions are difficulty in communication due to a deficiency in the domain of language and in the use of imagination to deal with symbolic games, difficulty in socialization and a restrictive and repetitive pattern of behavior.

“In terms of social communication, there may be children with autism who speak, but there is difficulty in telling or retelling a story. Even if she speaks, the fluency is not typical, it is what we call atypical”, details Christiane.

Experts point out that identifying developmental delays, as well as early diagnosis, can bring benefits. Referral for behavioral interventions and educational support at the earliest possible age enhances the quality of life of those living with autism.

Causes

The cause of autism spectrum disorder still remains unknown. Scientific evidence indicates that the origin is related to a combination of genetic and environmental factors.

In this context, the genetic components involve hundreds or thousands of genes whose performance can be influenced by factors such as the advanced age of the parents at the time of conception, extreme neglect of child care, exposure to certain medications during the prenatal period, in addition to the premature birth and low birth weight, according to the SBP.

ASD originates in the first years of life, with different manifestations for each person. Some children may experience symptoms shortly after birth. However, in most cases the signs are identified between 12 and 24 months of age.

On average, the diagnosis is made between 4 and 5 years of age, which may delay the adoption of intervention measures that bring gains to the child’s cognitive functioning.

warning signs

According to the SBP, suggestive signs in the first year of life are the loss of skills already acquired, such as babbling or reaching out, eye contact or social smiling, lack of reaction to sounds, noises and voices in the environment, and social smiling. .

Signs also include poor eye contact and difficulty holding gazes, as well as poor attention to other people’s faces and showing greater interest in objects than individuals.

“One of the first signs of autism is eye contact. We asked, for example, the mothers if they noticed whether or not the child maintained eye contact during breastfeeding. Sometimes, this contact is not eye to eye”, says the neuropediatrician. “There may also be hypersensitivity, which can be auditory, like a child who is very uncomfortable with noises. Or on the skin, such as hypersensitivity to touch in children who prefer not to be held, walk on tiptoe, don’t like to step on sand or hold modeling clay, for example”, he adds.

The child may also show little or no vocalization, reject touch, not follow moving objects and people nearby, and not respond to the name (see the picture ).

Different types of autism

According to the clinical picture, ASD can be classified as classic, high-performance or pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified.

Classic autism, for example, presents a variable degree of impairment. In general, individuals are focused on themselves, they do not establish eye contact with people or the environment. Although they speak, but do not use speech as a communication tool.

They are able to understand simple statements, but have difficulty understanding and tend to learn the literal meaning of words. In this sense, they do not understand metaphors or double meaning phrases.

In the most severe forms, there is a complete absence of interpersonal contact.

In high-functioning autism, formerly called Asperger’s syndrome, individuals experience similar difficulties, but to a considerably reduced extent. They are able to communicate and show intelligence, especially in the knowledge they seek to specialize in, due to their fixed interest in topics.

People are considered part of the autism spectrum, without enough symptoms to include them in some category, which makes the diagnosis more difficult, which characterizes the pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified.