Faces of Autism

One of the most commonly asked questions about autism is what are the earliest signs of the disorder? Researchers from the University of California-Davis MIND Institute have found that the earliest symptoms of autism, such as lack of eye contact, smiling, and communicative babbling, are not present during the first six months of an infant’s life, but become apparent between six months to one year of age. Their full study will be published in the March issue of the journal American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Many babies are born with relatively normal social abilities but some time between 6 -12 months parents begin to notice a gradual decline in social responsiveness. Sometimes it is not so apparent until closer to the second birthday. The American Academy of Pediatrics currently suggests that Doctors screen for autism twice before the end of the second year of age. Parents of children who were diagnosed closer to their third birthday often report having had a “gut feeling” that something about their child was different despite not having an official diagnosis. The following video is just such a story. The video documents the first five years in the life of Quinn – a wonderful, exuberant, mostly non-verbal boy with autism. Autism Spectrum Disorder affects approximately 1 in 110 children in the United States. It is most commonly characterized by deficits in social skills, communication, and repetitive behaviors. In the video, you can see how the signs of autism appeared over time, even before Quinn’s diagnosis was made at 21 months.