What is Autism Spectrum Disorder? Kalil and experts explain
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition with a documented biological basis, influenced by genetic factors that affect the development of brain circuits. It manifests itself from the first years of life and accompanies the individual throughout their entire career, impacting different areas and causing losses and suffering.
Psychiatrist Daniela Bordini, coordinator of the Social Cognition Outpatient Clinic at Unifesp, explained, in conversation with Dr. Roberto Kalil on the CNN Vital Signs program this Saturday (20), that the main areas affected by the disorder are related to sociability, communication, the pattern of interests and the individual's pattern of behavior.
"It is a very early disorder that accompanies the individual throughout their entire trajectory and impacts different areas", said Bordini.
The term "spectrum" is used because ASD is a diagnostic category that encompasses people who are very different from each other, in their characteristics, difficulties and needs.
"We joke that whoever has met an autistic person has met autism. This clinical heterogeneity makes it difficult for society to understand. The person has a stereotype that does not correspond to this entire spectrum", explained Bordini.
First signs
Psychologist Tatiana Mecca, professor at the Faculty of Medical Sciences of Santa Casa de São Paulo, highlighted the importance of family members and teachers in early identification of the disorder.
She cited a study carried out by the Steinkopf Institute, in Brazil, with more than 23 thousand individuals diagnosed with autism, which revealed that more than 50% of the first signs are identified by family members, while approximately 9.5% are noticed for the first time by teachers.
Mecca explained that, in the first year of life, the first signs tend to be nonspecific. These include impairments in motor development, sleep disorders and difficulties in non-verbal aspects of communication.
"The quality of the baby's visual contact when interacting with their reference figures" is one of the aspects to be observed, according to the specialist. Other warning signs include poor response to the environment, low social orientation when someone calls or interacts with the baby, and decreased social smiling during interaction.
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Source: CNN