What is ASD?
ASD - autistic spectrum disorder - is a term used to describe a group of developmental disorders including autism and Asperger syndrome
It is characterised by difficulties with:
Communication – problems with speech, gestures, facial expressions, body language.
Social Interactions – problems with relationships, lack of empathy and understanding, inappropriate eye contact, poor social skills.
Flexibility of Thought(imagination) – rigidity and inflexibility, resistant to change, obsessional and ritualistic behaviours.
These three difficulties are known as the Triad of Impairment. Just as every individual is different, so impairments may vary in degree and proportion. One person may have more deficits in the area of social relationships, but less in the area of imagination and communication. The next may have real difficulty with imagination, but relate to others and communicate reasonably well.
In most cases of ASD, a delay in development becomes apparent during the pre school years.
Autism
Autism is another generic term used to describe people with ASD. It generally refers to those people who do not have a diagnosis of Asperger syndrome – most often those with associated severe learning difficulties, challenging behaviours and other complex needs.
Asperger syndrome
Some people with a diagnosis of Asperger syndrome may be highly intelligent. Sometimes they can lead a perfectly normal life with little difficulty, but sometimes, the degree of impairment can make life just as much of a challenge as for those with autism.
Hans Asperger identified the following indicators of the syndrome that came to be named after him:
• Social impairment – extreme egocentricity
• Speech and language peculiarities
• Repetitive routines
• Motor clumsiness
• Narrow interests
• Non-verbal communication problems
High Functioning Autism (HFA)
This is a term used to describe a diagnosis of autism in children with an IQ in the normal range - that is to say, above 70.
Some people believe that HFA and Asperger syndrome are one and the same thing. The differences are subtle but generally, children with a diagnosis of Asperger syndrome do not exhibit early cognitive or developmental delay.
Children with HFA do, but they have greater degree of intellectual ability and better social and adaptive behaviour skills than those normally associated with autism.
There is a wealth of information available on ASD in books and across the internet.
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