Autism and Asperger Outline

AUTISM

Diagnostic criteria for the PDD’s RE: the DSM-IV criteria: Be familiar with behaviors you might observe: Be able to provide specific examples

Childhood Autism:

There are qualitative impairments in social interaction and communication.

1. Impaired use of eye to eye gaze, facial expressions, inability to point out objects of interest and failure to develop peer relationships

2. Inability to sustain a conversation with others

3. Repetitive motor mannerisms and delays in imaginative play

Asperger’s Syndrome:

1. Impairments with eye to eye gazing, along w/ persistent preoccupation with parts of

objects

2. No clinical delay in language, cognitive development or age appropriate self-help skills

3. Failure to develop peer relationships

Retts Disorder:

1. Normal head circumference at birth but there is a deceleration of head growth between

ages 5 and 48 months

2. Loss of previously acquired purposeful hand skills by 5 to 30 months (e.g. -handwashing)

3. Severed expressive AND receptive language development

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder:

1. Typical development for the 1st 2 years after birth in both communication and social relationships

2. Loss of acquired skills before age 10 in the areas of expressive OR receptive language; bowel or bladder control; motor skills

3. Abnormalities in sustaining conversations; repetitive patterns of behavior; pretend play