ASD Flashcards
ASD refers to which 5 disorders?
asperger's syndrome rett's syndrome childhood autism pervasive developmental disorder pervasive developmental disorder NOS (Non-otherwise specified)
what is the triad of impairment in ASD?
impaired social interaction
restricted interests
impaired communication
what 4 behaviours are affected in ASD?
social communication
social interaction
social imagination
repetitive behaviours
how is social communicaiton affected in ASD?
generally good language skills but can struggle to grasp underlying meaning of conversation
difficulties understanding abstract parts of language (i.e that take 2-3 steps to understanding) such as jokes, idioms, metaphors and sarcasm
often have monotomous voices or strange accents
language can be pedantic and idiosynchratic
narrow interests which dominate conversations (lack of reciprocity)
difficulty sharing thoughts and feelings - can present with anger
how is social interaction affected in ASD?
difficulties in picking up non-verbal cues
appear self focused and lacking in empathy when in fact they are simply trying to figure out social situations, cant really put themselves in other’s shoes
continually struggle to make and sustain personal and social relationships
how is social imagination affected in ASD?
difficulties thinking flexibly and in abstract ways (taking others opinions on board and using it to change their own opinon)
cant understand abstract thinking
inability to understand other points of view
difficulty applying knowledge and skills across settings with different people
difficulties projecting themselves into the future and planning goals sensibly (even if they do have a goal, cant really think of the steps in how to get there, live in the day to day)
how are repetitive behaviours affected in ASD?
stereotyped or repetitive motor movements, use of objects or speech
insistence on sameness, inflexible adherence to routines or ritualised patterns of verbal or non-verbal behaviour
highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity of focus (e.g people might like marine life but people with ASD will know everything about sharks specifically)
hyper/hypo reactivity to sensory input or unusual interest in sensory aspects of environment
which gender is ASD more common in?
boys 4:1
- girls are generally socially better from an early age so can struggle on for longer
theories behind gender differences?
sex hormones play role in organisation of brain circuits during early development
receptors for sex hormones widely distributed in brain and influence neural signalling
could just be due to under-diagnosing in females
how is brain different in ASD in females?
sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) levels are reduced in females with aspergers pointing to higher levels of of free testosterone
link between autism and gender identity?
gender identity struggles are 3X more common in ASD
50% of young people referred to gender identity clinics have ASD traits
girls exposed to high levels of testosterone (e.g congenital adrenal hyperplasia) show more traits of ASD and higher rates of gender dysphoria
what is thought to cause ASD?
no clear mechanism environmental, biological and genetic factors in some cases, autistic behaviour can be caused by - rubella in pregnant mother - tuberous sclerosis - fragile X syndrome - encephalitis - untreated phenylketonuria
genetics in ASD?
strongly heritable of around 35-90%
90% in MZ twins
involves deletion, duplication and inversion in chromosomes
environmental factors in ASD?
action of teratogens in first 8 wees of pregnancy
evidence for heavy metals,
toxicity or exposure to particular diets is anecdotal and not reliable
biological/perinatal factors in ASD?
umbilical cord complications fetal distress birth injury/trauma multiple birth and haemaorrhage low birth weight/small for age congenital malformation meconium aspiration neonatal anaemia, hyperbilirubinaemia
