Birth Defects and Disorders: Autism

Autism is a developmental disorder which affects the development of one’s brain. It normally appears in the first three years of one’s age. This disorder usually affects the communication skills and areas of social interaction.

What is Autism?

Autism is a brain disorder that has effect on normal functioning of brain. Person suffering from autism have problems with non-verbal communication. It is a wide spectrum disorder which means no two people with autism will have same symptoms. Where some might show combination of many symptoms, some will have mild symptoms. This is the reason this disorder affects individuals differently and varying degrees of severity is found among them.

Causes of Autism

Even though there is no single or specific cause behind autism, experts are of the opinion that it is caused by abnormalities in the structure or functioning of the brain. Scanning the brains of autistic children showed that the structure and shape of their brains were different from that of non-autistic children. Some researchers believe that some problems during pregnancy or child birth cause autism in children – for example viral infections, exposure to environmental chemicals or metabolic imbalances.

Recent studies have revealed that maternal use of fertility drug Clomid may be a risk factor for this disorder in many cases. It is believed that people with specific medical conditions tend to develop autism. It is also believed that boys are more likely to develop autistic disorder as compared to girls.

Pregnancy and Autism

If a pregnant woman develops flu or has fever for more than one week, there are greater chances of the child in her womb of developing autism. Apart from this, studies show that following illnesses and circumstances during pregnancy increased the possibilities of autism in the offspring.

• Influenza during pregnancy doubles the risk of autism.
• Persistent fever during pregnancy that lasted for a week or more triples the risk of autism.
• Antibiotic use during pregnancy also increases the chance of autism development in the child.
• Parents with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia – A child whose mother, father, brother or sister has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder is at higher risk of being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
• Older fathers – Children born to older fathers have the risk of developing autism as birth defect.
• Air Traffic Pollution – Studies show that if a mother is exposed to air traffic pollution during pregnancy, the risk of autism in her offspring is greater.
• Labour Inducing Drugs – It is found that the drugs that are used for induced labour or augmentation of labour might increase the risk of autism in the child.
• Many other fetal complications and diabetes in mother has been linked with autism as well.

The Benefits of Early Detection of Autism

Children who have been detected with autism early tend to have better brain function as well as communication skills and overall social behaviour as compared to autistic children with no intervention. It has been observed that kids with autism responded well when assistance was provided early.

The new techniques that have been developed to incorporate learning and developmental skills in children work well and are easy to use with very young children.

Treatment for Autism

Even though there is no cure for autism, early detection can help a lot. Treatment includes a lot of components and is most effective when detected earlier.

• Medication is provided to treat many behavioural and emotional symptoms of autism like:

- Aggression

- Hyperactivity

- Irritability

- Anxiety

- Compulsions

- Sleep difficulty

• Attention problems
• Highly arranged training sessions
• Occupational therapy
• Physical therapy
• Speech-language therapy

Although there is no specific symptom of autism, there is no single treatment as well. Right combination of therapies and early detection of the disorder will bring great difference.