Autism is a neurological disorder that affects social interaction and communication. It is characterized by repetitive behaviors and restricted interests. The causes are largely genetic but also involve environmental factors. Symptoms begin in early childhood and can range from mild to severe. Diagnosis involves observation of behaviors and developmental screening. While there is no cure, early intervention and support can help children with autism reach their full potential.

1. AUTISM

2. WHAT IS AUTISM….???
• ASA: Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically
appears during the first three years of life and is the result of a
neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain
,impacting development in the areas of social interaction and
communication skills.
• Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how
nerve cells and their synapses connect and organize.

3. ASD
• Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASDs) includes three disorders: Autism,
Asperger Syndrome, which lacks delays in cognitive development and
language, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder (commonly
abbreviated as PDD-NOS), which is diagnosed when the full set of
criteria for autism or Asperger syndrome are not met.

4. INCIDENCE AND PREVALENCE
• 1–2 per 1,000 for autism and close to 6 per 1,000 for ASD
• The number of reported cases of autism increased dramatically in the
1990s and early 2000s. This increase is largely attributable to changes
in diagnostic practices, referral patterns, availability of services, age at
diagnosis, and public awareness
• Boys are at higher risk for ASD than girls. The sex ratio averages 4.3:1
and is greatly modified by cognitive impairment: it may be close to
2:1 with intellectual disability and more than 5.5:1 without.[

5. SYMPTOMS
•The hallmark feature of ASD is impaired
social interaction- first appears during
infancy or childhood, follows a steady
course without remission.

7. •Infancy- baby may be unresponsive to
people or focus intently on one item to
the exclusion of others for long periods of
time.
•May fail to respond to their names and
often avoid eye contact with other
people.

8. •Childhood-Repetitive movements such as
rocking and twirling, or in self-abusive
behavior such as biting or head-banging.
•They also tend to start speaking later than
other children and may refer to themselves
by name instead of “I” or “me.”
•They lack the necessary playing and talking
skills.

10. • Socially clumsy, sometimes offensive in his/her
comments, or out of synch with everyone else.
• Conversation with an autistic person may feel very
much like a one-way trip.
• They may lack empathy.
• They find sudden loud noises, smells and sudden
changes in the intensity of lighting and ambient
temperature unpleasant and quite shocking.
• Their cognitive skills may develop fast, while their
social and language skills trail behind.
• The social skills will not develop at the same pace as
other people's.

11. NAME DEFINITION
Stereotype repetitive movement, such as hand flapping, head rolling, or
body rocking.
Compulsive Behaviour It is intended and appears to follow rules, such as arranging
objects in stacks or lines.
Sameness resistance to change; for example, insisting that the
furniture not be moved or refusing to be interrupted.
Ritualistic Behaviour an unvarying pattern of daily activities, such as an
unchanging menu or a dressing ritual. This is closely
associated with sameness
Restricted behavior is limited in focus, interest, or activity, such as
preoccupation with a single television program, toy or
game.
Self-injury movements that injure or can injure the person, such as
eye-poking, skin- picking , hand-biting and head-banging.

12. • An estimated 60%–80% of autistic people have motor
signs that include poor muscle tone, poor motor
planning , and toe walking;deficits in motor
coordination are pervasive across ASD and are greater
in autism proper.
• Physical health issues such as sleep and
gastrointestinal disturbances.
• Some persons with ASD excel in visual skills, music,
math and art.

13. CAUSES
•Scientists aren’t certain about what
causes ASD, but it’s likely that both
genetics and environment play a role.

16. GENETICS
• Twin and family studies strongly suggest that some people have a genetic
predisposition to autism.
• Identical twin studies show that if one twin is affected, there is up to a 90 percent
chance the other twin will be affected.
ENVIRONMENT
• certain foods, infectious disease, heavy metals, solvents, diesel exhaust, PCBs,
phthalates and phenols used in plastic products, pesticides, brominated flame
retardants, alcohol, smoking, illicit drugs, vaccines,[9] and prenatal stress,[56]
although no links have been found, and some have been completely disproven.
• advanced parental age at time of conception (both mom and dad), maternal illness
during pregnancy and certain difficulties during birth, particularly those involving
periods of oxygen deprivation to the baby’s brain.

17. ONE IMPORTANT
GENE
CORRELATED BUT
NON-IMPACTING
GENES
COMBINATION ACTIVATION OF BACKUP
GENES
COMBINATION
COMBINATION
ENVIRONMENTAL
TRIGGERS
ONE OR SEVERAL
AUTISM GENES
NON-AUTISM GENES
CONTRIBUTE TO
OVERLOAD
MULTIPLE GENE-
ENOUGH TO MEET
THRESHOLD
AUTISM MANIFESTED
AUTISM-
AVOIDED OR
AMELIORATE
D
SPURIOUS
(ILLUSIORY)
CORRELATION

18. MECHANISM
PATHOPHYSIOLOGY NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL

19. PATHOPHYSIOLOGY
• Neuroanatomical studies and the associations with teratogens
strongly suggest that autism's mechanism includes alteration of brain
development soon after conception.
• Just after birth, the brains of autistic children tend to grow faster than
usual, followed by normal or relatively slower growth in childhood.

20. • Hypotheses for the cellular and molecular bases of
pathological early overgrowth include the following:
1. An excess of neurons that causes local
overconnectivity in key brain regions.
2. Disturbed neuronal migration during early
gestation.
3. Unbalanced excitatory–inhibitory networks.
4. Abnormal formation of synapses and dendritic
spines. Disrupted synaptic development may also
contribute to epilepsy, which may explain why the
two conditions are associated.

21. • The underconnectivity theory of autism hypothesizes
that autism is marked by underfunctioning high-level
neural connections and synchronization, along with
an excess of low-level processes.

22. NEUROPSYCHOLOGY
• The extreme male brain theory, hypothesizes that autism is an
extreme case of the male brain, defined psychometrically as
individuals in whom systemizing is better than empathizing.
• Weak central coherence theory hypothesizes that a limited ability to
see the big picture underlies the central disturbance in autism. One
strength of this theory is predicting special talents and peaks in
performance in autistic people.

23. DIAGNOSIS
• ASD may go unrecognized, especially in mildly affected
children or when it is masked by more debilitating
handicaps.
• Very early indicators that require evaluation by an expert
include:
no babbling or pointing by age
no single words by 16 months or two-word phrases by age
no response to name
loss of language or social skills
poor eye contact
excessive lining up of toys or objects
no smiling or social responsiveness.

24. Later indicators include:
impaired ability to make friends with peers
impaired ability to initiate or sustain a conversation
with others
absence or impairment of imaginative and social play
stereotyped, repetitive, or unusual use of language
restricted patterns of interest that are abnormal in
intensity or focus
preoccupation with certain objects or subjects
inflexible adherence to specific routines or rituals.

25. • Tests and screening method assissting in the diagnosis
of ASD:
Autism diagnostic Observation Schedule
Autism /diagnostic Interview
Childhood Autism Rating Scales
Developmental Behaviour Checklist
Social Communication Questionnaire

26. RISK
• Influenza during pregnancy - doubles autism risk for the child
• Persistent fever during pregnancy - that lasted for at least one week
triples autism risk for the child
• Antibiotic usage during pregnancy - slightly raises autism risk for the
child

27. • Immune system irregularities-Caltech (California
Institute of Technology) researchers reported in PNAS
(Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)
(July 2012) that certain changes in an overactive
immune system can contribute to autism-like
behaviors in mice.
• Specific gene mutations - scientists from the Seattle
Children's Research Institute found new gene
mutations which were linked to the development of
autism, epilepsy, hydrocephalus and cancer. The
mutations were in the following genes - AKT3, PIK3R2
and PIK3CA. Their study was published in Nature
Genetics (July 2012).

28. • Air traffic pollution during pregnancy and autism link
- if a pregnant mother is exposed to air traffic
pollution during her pregnancy, the risk of autism in
her offspring is greater, researchers from the
University of Southern California and Children’s
Hospital Los Angeles reported in Archives of General
Psychiatry (November 2012 issue).

29. PREVENTION
•Prevention applies to environmental, genetic and infectious disorders
as well as to accidental injuries.
•Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a highly common and totally preventable
cause.
•Provide proper pre-natal care. Folic acid should be taken before
conception and early in pregnancy.
•Certain tests, such as ultrasound, amniocentesis,chorionic villus
sampling and various blood tests should be performed during
pregnancy.

30. • Genetic counselling should be done. Prospective
parents, especially couples who already have a child
with mental retardation are keen to know the risk of
their next child being affected.
• Neonatal intensive care- Brain damage in very sick
newborn babies can sometimes be prevented by
providing highly specialized and technology-intensive
care.

31. PROGNOSIS
• Few high-quality studies address long-term prognosis.
• Some adults show modest improvement in communication skills, but
a few decline; no study has focused on autism after midlife.[
• Acquiring language before age six, having an IQ above 50, and having
a marketable skill all predict better outcomes; independent living is
unlikely with severe autism.

32. AN AUTISTIC CHILD SAYS…….