DSM-V Criteria for Diagnosing Autism
The American Psychiatric Association’sĀ Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental DisordersĀ is the main diagnostic reference used by mental health professionals and insurance providers in the United States. The current (fifth) edition, which was published in 2013, is commonly referred to as the “DSM-V.” Diagnostic Criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, as manifested by the following, currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive): Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity, ranging, for example, from abnormal social approach and failure of normal back-and-forth conversation; to reduced sharing of interests, emotions, or affect; to failure to initiate or respond to social interactions. Deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviors used for social interaction, ranging, for example, from poorly integrated verbal and nonverbal …
Continue Reading >NINDS Information on Autism Spectrum Disorder
Autism Spectrum Disorder Information from the National Institute for Neurological Disease and Stroke Autism is a group of developmental brain disorders, collectively called autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The term “spectrum” refers to the wide range of symptoms, skills, and levels of impairment, or disability, that children with ASD can have. Some children are mildly impaired by their symptoms, but others are severely disabled. ASD is diagnosed according to guidelines listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition – Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR). The manual currently defines five disorders, sometimes called pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs), as ASD: Autistic disorder (classic autism) Asperger’s disorder (Asperger syndrome) Pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) Rett’s disorder (Rett syndrome) Childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD). Information on ASD …
Continue Reading >Thimerosal Is Not Responsible for Autism
It is hard to know exactly when the hypothesis that mercury could cause autism was first proposed. The idea was circulating well before 2000, the year that thimerosalāa mercury-containing preservativeāwas removed from childrenās vaccines. In its October 2001 report, Immunization Safety Review: Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded that, while it was biologically plausible that thimerosal could cause autism, no data supported the claim that it did cause autism. Since that time, much has happened (and not happened). The most significant thing has been, as Sherlock Holmes said in “Silver Blaze,” the “dog that didnāt bark.” Because manufacturers stopped using thimerosal in childrenās vaccines in 2000, few children now under age four have ever received a thimerosal-containing vaccine. Even those …
Continue Reading >How “Educational Assessments” Skew Autism Prevalence Rates
During an Individual Education Plan (IEP) meeting with our local school district, one of the teachers suggest that my younger son was autistic. This surprised me because we had just provided a letter from a well-respected developmental pediatrician that specified why the boy not meet the diagnostic criteria for autism. In response to my concerns, the teacher and school psychologist explained that he met the criteria for autism as determined in Oregon under a federal law called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). In response to this law, school districts have been assessing (not diagnosing) āautismā in children since 1992. Because the eligibility category under IDEA has the same name as the medical diagnosis, there has been a lot of confusion and unnecessary worry. …
Continue Reading >Washington Definition and Eligibility Criteria for Special Services for Autism
“Autism” means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, that adversely affects a student’s educational performance and requires specially designed instruction. If a student manifests characteristics of autism after age three, that student still could be diagnosed as having autism if the criteria in this section are satisfied. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines and unusual responses to sensory experiences. The term does not apply if a student’s educational performance is adversely affected primarily because the student has an emotional/behavioral disability, as defined in this chapter. The category of autism includes students with pervasive developmental disorders. All students …
Continue Reading >Minnesota Rules for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
Subpart 1. Definition. “Autism spectrum disorders (ASD)” means a range of pervasive developmental disorders, with onset in childhood, that adversely affect a pupil’s functioning and result in the need for special education instruction and related services. ASD is a disability category characterized by an uneven developmental profile and a pattern of qualitative impairments in several areas of development, including social interaction, communication, or the presence of restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities. These core features may present themselves in a wide variety of combinations that range from mild to severe, and the number of behavioral indicators present may vary. ASD may include Autistic Disorder, Childhood Autism, Atypical Autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, Asperger’s Disorder, or other related pervasive developmental …
Continue Reading >Autism Spectrum Disorders (Pervasive Developmental Disorders)
National Institute of Mental Health Booklet (April 2004) Not until the middle of the twentieth century was there a name for a disorder that now appears to affect an estimated one of every five hundred children, a disorder that causes disruption in families and unfulfilled lives for many children. In 1943 Dr. Leo Kanner of the Johns Hopkins Hospital studied a group of 11 children and introduced the label early infantile autism into the English language. At the same time a German scientist, Dr. Hans Asperger, described a milder form of the disorder that became known as Asperger syndrome. Thus these two disorders were described and are today listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR (fourth edition, text revision)1 as two …
Continue Reading >Autism and Communication
The brain disorder autism begins in early childhood and persists throughout adulthood affecting three crucial areas of development: verbal and nonverbal communication, social interaction, and creative or imaginative play. Autism is the most common of a group of conditions called pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs). PDDs involve delays in many areas of childhood development. The first signs of autism are usually noticed by the age of three. Many individuals who are autistic also develop epilepsy, a brain disorder that causes convulsive seizures, as they approach adulthood. Other characteristics may include repetitive and ritualistic behaviors, hand flapping, spinning or running in circles, excessive fears, self-injury such as head banging or biting, aggression, insensitivity to pain, temper tantrums, and sleeping and eating disturbances. Autistic individuals live a normal …
Continue Reading >Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) for Autism Spectrum Disorders
4) “Children with disabilities” means children who require special education because of: autism; communication disorders; deafblindness; emotional disturbances; hearing impairments, including deafness; mental retardation; orthopedic impairments; other health impairments; specific learning disabilities; traumatic brain injuries; or visual impairments, including blindness. a) “Autism” means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. Other characteristics that may be associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences. Essential features are typically but not necessarily manifested before age three. Autism may include autism spectrum disorders such as but not limited to autistic disorder, pervasive developmental disorder — not otherwise specified, …
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