Autism or Autism Spectrum disorders refers to a group of developmental disorders which often can be detected by the age of 3 years. Autism is characterized by 3 core symptoms which are:
- Impairment in language and communication
- Impairment in social interaction and
- Repetitive or stereotyped patterns of behaviour
Autism Treatment in Ghaziabad
The Autism treatment in Ghaziabad is now provided by Continua kids. Children with autism have trouble communicating and understanding what other people think and feel making it very hard for them to express themselves either with words or through gestures, facial expressions, and touch.
These children are very sensitive and may be greatly troubled, sometimes even pained by sounds, touches, smells, or sights that seem normal to others.
They may even have repetitive, stereotyped body movements such as rocking, pacing, or hand flapping. They may also have unusual responses to people, attachments to objects, resistance to change in their routines, or aggressive or self-injurious behaviour. At times they may seem not to notice people, objects, or activities in their surroundings.
Autism Treatment in Amritsar
The Autism treatment in Amritsar is now accessible to all kids having international standards. Children with autism are sometimes cognitively impaired to a degree. In contrast to more typical cognitive impairment, which is characterised by relatively even delays in all areas of development, people with autism show uneven skill development. They may have problems in certain areas, especially the ability to communicate and relate to others. But they may have unusually developed skills in other areas, such as drawing, creating music, solving maths problems, or memorising facts. For this reason, they may test higher, perhaps even in the average or above-average range on nonverbal intelligence tests.
Causes
Autism spectrum disorder has no single known cause. Given the complexity of the disorder, and the fact that symptoms and severity vary, there are probably many causes. Both genetics and environment may play a role.
- Several different genes appear to be involved in autism spectrum disorder. For some children, autism spectrum disorder can be associated with a genetic disorder, such as Rett syndrome or fragile X syndrome. For other children, genetic changes (mutations) may increase the risk of autism spectrum disorder. Still other genes may affect brain development or the way that brain cells communicate, or they may determine the severity of symptoms. Some genetic mutations seem to be inherited, while others occur spontaneously.
- Environmental factors. Researchers are currently exploring whether factors such as viral infections, medications or complications during pregnancy, or air pollutants play a role in triggering autism spectrum disorder.
Below are some common signs shown by children who have autism spectrum disorder.
Social communication and interaction
- Fails to respond to his or her name or appears not to hear you at times
- Resists cuddling and holding, and seems to prefer playing alone, retreating into his or her own world
- Has poor eye contact and lacks facial expression
- Doesn’t speak or has delayed speech, or loses previous ability to say words or sentences
- Can’t start a conversation or keep one going, or only starts one to make requests or label items
- Speaks with an abnormal tone or rhythm and may use a singsong voice or robot-like speech
- Repeats words or phrases verbatim, but doesn’t understand how to use them
- Doesn’t appear to understand simple questions or directions
- Doesn’t express emotions or feelings and appears unaware of others’ feelings
- Doesn’t point at or bring objects to share interest
- Inappropriately approaches a social interaction by being passive, aggressive or disruptive
- Has difficulty recognizing nonverbal cues, such as interpreting other people’s facial expressions, body postures or tone of voice
Patterns of behaviour
- Performs repetitive movements, such as rocking, spinning or hand flapping
- Performs activities that could cause self-harm, such as biting or head-banging
- Develops specific routines or rituals and becomes disturbed at the slightest change
- Has problems with coordination or has odd movement patterns, such as clumsiness or walking on toes, and has odd, stiff or exaggerated body language
- Is fascinated by details of an object, such as the spinning wheels of a toy car, but doesn’t understand the overall purpose or function of the object
- Is unusually sensitive to light, sound or touch, yet may be indifferent to pain or temperature
- Doesn’t engage in imitative or make-believe play
- Fixates on an object or activity with abnormal intensity or focus
- Has specific food preferences, such as eating only a few foods, or refusing foods with a certain texture
When to see a doctor
if your child:
- Doesn’t respond with a smile or happy expression by 6 months
- Doesn’t mimic sounds or facial expressions by 9 months
- Doesn’t babble or coo by 12 months
- Doesn’t gesture — such as point or wave — by 14 months
- Doesn’t say single words by 16 months
- Doesn’t play “make-believe” or pretend by 18 months
- Doesn’t say two-word phrases by 24 months
- Loses language skills or social skills at any age
When we notice these red flags in a child, we must consult a developmental paediatrician and a clinical psychologist who are trained to be able to make a correct diagnosis. At Continua kids we have the best autism treatment options available, with the early intervention program which is provided by occupational therapist in Amritsar to help the child develop the skills in various developmental domains
Treatment
There are no “cures” for autism, but behavioural & educational therapies along with other treatment considerations may help reduce symptoms and early diagnosis is key to connecting children with autism to treatment. At Continua Kids Jaipur, we have a team of trained developmental paediatrician and clinical psychologist who can perform all the necessary diagnostic testing required to make a diagnosis. Assessment is followed by a intervention plan.
The treatments your child can benefit from most depends on his situation and needs, but the goal is the same: to reduce his symptoms and improve his learning and development.
Behavioural & Educational Interventions includes:
- Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA).ABA is often used in schools and clinics to help your child learn positive behaviours and reduce negative ones. This approach can be used to improve a wide range of skills.
- Occupational Therapy. This kind of treatment helps your child learn life skills like feeding and dressing himself, bathing, and understanding how to relate to other people. The skills he learns are meant to help him live as independently as he can.
- Sensory Integration Therapy.If your child is easily upset by things like bright lights, certain sounds, or the feeling of being touched, this therapy can help him learn to deal with that kind of sensory information.
- Speech therapy: helps to improve speech and communication skills allowing better expression.
- Physical Therapy: helps to improves gross motor skills and sensory integration issues particularly the ability to feel and be aware of his/her body in space.
Medications
Medicines can help with related symptoms like irritability, anger, depression, seizures, insomnia, and trouble focusing.Studies have shown that medication is most effective when it’s combined with behavioural therapies.
Tips for Parents
- Praise them for the behaviours they’re doing well, it will make them (and you) feel good.
- Make sure they get consistent guidance and interaction, so they can practice what they learn from therapy.
- Finding activities that seem like pure fun, and not more education or therapy, may help your child open up and connect with you.
- Stay positive and try not to get discouraged if they don’t respond well to a particular method.
- Take them on everyday errands like grocery shopping or a post office run, it may help them get them used to the world around them.
Continua Kids is one of the best child developmental centre and autism therapy centre in Delhi with its other branches in Delhi-NCR.