Asperger syndrome is a severe developmental disorder that has as main feature the difficulty in social interaction and finding interest, followed by a limited and unusual behavior. Many come to confuse this condition with autism without mental RETAS calling high functioning autism, but is now somewhat difficult to establish differences between the two since they have similar symptoms.
How is it diagnosed?
The diagnosis of AS is complicated by the lack of an evaluation or standardized diagnostic program. In fact, because there are various assessment tools in use today, each with a different approach, the same child may receive different diagnoses depending on the useful assessment used by the doctor.
To complicate matters further, some doctors believe that AS is not a separate and distinct disorder. Instead, they call high-functioning autism and see it at the end of the autism spectrum with mild symptoms that differ only in degree, from classic autism. Some clinicians use two diagnoses, AS or high functioning autism so interchangeable. This makes the collection of data on the incidence of AS, as some children will be diagnosed with high functioning autism instead of AS, and vice versa.
Most doctors rely on the presence of a core group of behaviors to alert them about the possibility of a diagnosis of AS. These are:
* Abnormal eye contact
* Withdrawal
* Do not turn around when called by name
* Do not use gestures to point or show
* Lack of interactive game
* Lack of interest in others
Some of these behaviors may be apparent in the first months of life the child, or appear later. Before 3 years of age must be present problems in at least one of the areas of communication and socialization or repetitive behavior and restricted.
The diagnosis of AS is a two stage process. The first stage begins with the assessment of development during a review of “healthy child” with the family physician or pediatrician. The second stage is a comprehensive assessment team to consider or rule out AS. This team usually includes a psychologist, neurologist, psychiatrist, speech therapist, and other professionals with expertise in diagnosing children with AS.
A comprehensive evaluation includes neurological and genetic assessment, with detailed tests of cognitive and language to establish IQ and psychomotor function assessed, strengths and weaknesses verbal and nonverbal learning style, and independent living skills. An assessment of strengths and weaknesses of communication includes assessing nonverbal forms of communication (gaze and gestures), the use of non-literal language (metaphors, irony, absurdities and humor); patterns of inflection, stress and volume modulation; pragmatic (taking shifts and sensitivity to verbal suggestions) and content, clarity and coherence of conversation. The doctor will see the results of the tests and combined with the child’s developmental history and current symptoms for diagnosis.
Are there treatments?
The ideal treatment for AS coordinates therapies that address the three core symptoms of the disorder: poor communication skills, obsessive or repetitive routines and physical clumsiness. There is no ideal treatment package for all children with AS, but most professionals agree that the earlier one intervenes, the better.
An effective treatment program builds on children’s interests, offers a predictable, teaches tasks as a series of simple steps, actively engages the child’s attention in highly structured activities and provides regular reinforcement of behavior. This type of program usually includes:
* Social skills training, a form of group therapy that teaches children with AS the skills they need to interact more successfully with other children
* Cognitive behavioral therapy, a type of therapy of “talk” that can help children more anxious or explosives to better manage their emotions and reduce obsessive interests and repetitive routines
* (more…)
