Autism Flashcards
1
Q
who is more likely to get autism?
A
‣ Incidence of about 1 in 40 (CDC, 2023)
‣ About 4:1 male to female ratio
2
Q
when is it diagnosed?
A
Usually diagnosed by age 3—sometimes see apparently normal development for the first year or so, followed by regression
3
Q
symptomology?
A
- Social impairments (the hallmark sign) , e.g., lack of eye contact
- Communication/language impairments, e.g, pronoun reversal
- Restricted and/or repetitive behavior, e.g., hand flapping
4
Q
treatment?
A
‣ Early intervention with different forms of naturalistic behavioral interventions and communication therapy work best —most scientific support
‣ The key is early identification and intervention
5
Q
etiology (causes)?
A
‣ May be related to abnormal immune response to environmental insult (prenatal virus, some toxins & pollutants)
‣ Associated with parental (especially father’s) age
6
Q
occurs more frequently in?
A
- in individuals with certain medical conditions
(EX: Fragile X Syndome, seizure disorders) - Is strongly heritable—average heritability about .80
7
Q
sporadic cases?
A
May be correlated with paternal age
8
Q
non sporadic cases?
A
- runs in families
- unstable genes ; Neuroligin genes: NLGN3 & NLGN4X found on X chromosome involved in the formation and plasticity of CNS synapses
