Early Signs of Autism

Autism is a brain disorder that typically affects a person's ability to communicate, form relationships with others, and respond appropriately to the environment. Some people with autism are relatively high-functioning, with speech and intelligence intact. Others are mentally handicapped, mute, or have serious language delays. For some, autism makes them seem closed off and shut down; others seem locked into repetitive behaviors and rigid patterns of thinking.

Although people with autism do not have exactly the same symptoms and deficits, they tend to share certain social, communication, motor, and sensory problems that affect their behavior in predictable ways.

Difference in the Behaviors of Infants and Toddlers With and Without Autism
Infants with Autism
Normal Infants
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Communication

* Avoid eye contact
* Seem deaf
* Start developing language, then abruptly stop talking altogether

* Study mother's face
* Easily stimulated by sounds
* Keep adding to vocabulary and expanding grammatical usage
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Social relationships

* Act as if unaware of the coming and going of others
* Physically attack and injure others without provocation
* Inaccessible, as if in a shell

* Cry when mother leaves the room and are anxious with strangers
* Get upset when hungry or frustrated
* Recognize familiar faces and smile
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Exploration of environment

* Remain fixated on a single item or activity
* Practice strange actions like rocking or hand-flapping
* Sniff or lick toys
* Show no sensitivity to burns or bruises, and engage in self-mutilation, such as eye gouging

* Move from one engrossing object or activity to another
* Use body purposefully to reach or acquire objects
* Explore and play with toys
* Seek pleasure and avoid pain