Autism disorder is a group of complex neurodevelopment disorders. It is characterized by difficulties in communication, social interaction, and behavior. The symptoms of AD appear early in childhood and thus affect the daily functioning of the child. Among the factors found to cause the disorder include mutations, genetic factors, deletions and copy number variants (National Institute of Mental Health, 2016). However, these factors account for a small portion of the cases.  There is no single factor seen to cause this disorder, but it is linked to abnormalities in the structure of the brain and its functioning.

Autism is a developmental disability and starts in infancy. The most important advance that has been in the study of this disorder is the discovery that Epilepsy, obstetric complications, Developmental delay, dysmorphic features and extremes of head size represent a sign that the disease is a neuropsychiatric disorder. Autism is however associated with several other Neurologic disorders. The Rett syndrome for example primarily affects girls and is associated with Autism. It affects a specific gene which makes the protein MeCP2 to be absent. MeCP2 is a protein which dims the activity of many genes in the nerve cells that affect synapse function (National Institute of Mental Health, 2016). The absence of this protein causes dendrites, structures on neurons that receive any incoming messages to contain few spines for synapses to grow.  The synapses that end up developing function abnormally.

Symptoms of AD vary from one person to the other depending on the severity of the disorder. For young children with less debilitating handicaps or mild AD, the symptoms may be unrecognized. In adults, the diagnosis is hard to make since the symptoms may overlap with symptoms of other mental disorders such as schizophrenia. Identifying the right diagnosis is significant in helping the patient get the right treatment and help. Diagnosing depends largely on the behavior of the child. Two main types of behavior exist which are repetitive behaviors and interaction behaviors (Chaste & Leboyer, 2012). People with AD can also have other difficulties including sensitiveness to light, noise, temperature, and clothing. Incidences of sleep problems, irritability, and digestion problems have also been reported.

People with AD vary widely in abilities in language. These abilities range from easy language to absent speech. Also, they also vary in cognitive development and profound intellectual disability. Individuals may also showcase of medical comorbidities such as physical anomalies and epilepsy (Chaste & Leboyer, 2012). Researchers agree that the mode of autism inheritance is not Mendelian in most of the cases.  Several studies had favored polygenic model. It is, therefore, the initial strategy used to unravel the genetic factors which increasing autism risk. Considering the individual approach which has been used in mental retardation, the search for a rare mutation was used giving a new hypothesis for the mechanism involved.

There is no specific treatment that can cure AD. The only available option is therapies for both the child and the parents to help them understand the disorder. Treatment should normally begin as early as possible. There are behavioral therapies, educational therapies, and family therapies. Educational therapies include parents and professionals who work together in improving the communication, social and behavioral skills (Weiss, Fiske & Ferraioli, 2009). Behavioral therapies address the language, social and behavioral difficulties that are associated with AD. They also teach how to communicate better with other children.

Family therapies help the family members understand how AD affects their children. Parents and other family members also learn how to interact and play with their children.  There are different programs used in the intervention of this disorder. Different programs concentrate on different things. It is important for the parent and the professionals involved making sound decisions for the treatment to be initiated. It must be considered whether the treatment will cause more harmful to the child or it will be helpful. Autistics like other normal human beings want to live a comfortable life though it is hard to present the account of autism sufficiently.

Autistics like other normal human beings want to live a comfortable life. It is however very hard to sufficiently present the account of autism since it manifests in different ways. According to the latest DSM-V to make a diagnosis of autism, an individual needs to deficits in social interaction and social communication that are very persistent across multiple contexts (Worley & Matson, 2012). However, scholars recognize that there are other features significant to autism and not mentioned in DSM-V. A major feature is language abilities and development which was included in DSM-IV. Another significant feature is motor abnormalities.  A recent analysis by Meng-Chuan, Michael and Simon leaves out under sensitivities and sensory as core features.  However, Temple Grandin argues that it is a key feature in the understanding of autism (Grandin & Panek, 2013).

References

Chaste, P., & Leboyer, M. (2012). Autism risk factors: genes, environment, and gene-environment interactions. Dialogues Clin Neurosci, 14(3), 281-92.

Grandin, T., & Panek, R. (2013). The autistic brain: Thinking across the spectrum. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

National Institute of Mental Health. (2016, March). Autism Spectrum Disorder. Retrieved June 17, 2016, from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/autism-spectrum-disorders-asd/index.shtml

Weiss, M. J., Fiske, K., & Ferraioli, S. (2009). Treatment of autism spectrum disorders. In Treating childhood psychopathology and developmental disabilities (pp. 287-332). Springer New York.

 
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