symptoms of autism

Currently, there are no biological tests to determine whether or not a person has autism. The diagnosis of autism is based on the individual's symptoms, characteristics, or behaviors. The more behaviors a person exhibits that are characteristic of autism, the more likely the individual is classified as having autism. There is no one defining feature or symptom of autism; however, most have some type of social-communication problem.

There are a few behaviors associated with autism that may be noticeable as early as 18 months of age. These include:

• Not following the gaze of others towards objects and events of interest
• Not pointing to direct others to look at something
• Not doing a variety of imaginative pretend play

Below is a list of behaviors that are commonly associated with autism. Again, one does not need to exhibit all of these behaviors in order to be considered "autistic."

• No, little, delayed or unusual speech; sometimes repetitive speech
• Anti-social, asocial, social but awkward
• Normal behavior and then changed sometime between 1 and 2 years of age (often referred to as "regressive autism")
• Insistence on sameness (similar to obsessive-compulsive behavior)
• No or little social eye contact
• Repetitive behaviors (e.g., hand-flapping, rocking)
• Little or no interest in same age children
• Using objects or his/her body in unusual ways
• Suspected deaf (unresponsive to some, but not all, sounds)
• Under-reactive or over-reactive to certain sensory stimuli, such as sounds, touch, smells, and tastes
• Does not use facial expressions appropriately
• Excessive and/or severe tantruming
• Aggressive towards others and/or self-aggressive
• Picky eater
• Sleeps very little

The Autism Research Institute in San Diego (4182 Adams Ave., San Diego, CA 92116) distributes a diagnostic checklist, the E-2 checklist, and will score the checklist for no charge.