Basically, autism spectrum disorder can be defined as a wide range of developmental and behavioral disorders that results from a combination of some traits. It ranges from low functioning autism to high functioning autism to normal behavior and to perhaps hyper socialization.
Autism is considered to be a persuasive development disorder, which basically means that it interferes with a child’s normal developmental abilities like speech and communication. The term spectrum is used because on one side there are children with different autism symptoms and on the other side, children are experiencing completely different signs of autism. For example, let’s take a look at the Autism spectrum and communication. You might have one child on one end of the spectrum that is non-verbal and will only use gestures to communicate. Then on the other end of the spectrum, you might have a child that can tell you every small detail. Both of these children have Autism, but they are on opposite ends of autism spectrum for their communication skills.
All of the primary deficits of autism are a spectrum: social skills, communication and behavior. Each child with Autism has skills that differ on each of the spectrums. Also, all of the types of autistic disorders make up “autism spectrum”. The different types of autistic disorders include: Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS), Asperger syndrome, and autistic disorder. PDD-NOS is a moderate form of autism. It is diagnosed when a patient doesn’t have as severe of a case of autistic disorder and it is not as severe as Asperger’s syndrome.
Asperger’s syndrome is the least severe form of autism. Generally, it is also referred as high functioning autism, as it causes one to talk about his or her favorite stuff, non-stop. Also this is more common a problem in boys as compared to girls. Autistic disorder is the most severe case of autism which doesn’t affect the child with more impairment than the other two forms of Autism that we discussed. This wide range of disorders makes it really confusing for an individual to understand what is autism? Taking expert help is advised in case you notice some uncommon behavioral traits in your child.
Autism Spectrum Disorder - Autism Awareness 