Child and Adolescent Disorders Flashcards
What type of disorder is autism?
Spectrum disorder
What does ASD (autism spectrum disorder)’s severity range from?
Mild to severe (minimal supervision to constant supervision)
When is ASD manifested?
Early childhood (primarily from 18-36 months of age)
What are children with High-functioning Autism known as?
Either intellectually gifted or “savant”
What categories do children with high-functioning autism normally excel in?
Music, art, memory, math, or perceptual skills such as puzzle building
Is there scientific evidence that supports that there is a link between the MMR and thimerosal containing vaccines?
No
What has been proved to decrease the risk of ASD?
Prenatal vitamins containing folic acid, before, at conception and through pregnancy
What has been proven to double the risk of the baby developing ASD by seven years of age?
Antidepressant use during the second or third trimester
What are a few social differences of children suffering with ASD?
- Doesn’t maintain eye contract or makes very little eye contact
- Doesn’t respond to a parents smile or other facial expressions
- Doesn’t look at objects a parent is looking at or pointing to
- Doesn’t point to objects to get a parent to look at them
- Doesn’t bring objects of interest to show a parent
- Often doesn’t have appropriate facial expressions
- Unable to perceive what others might be thinking or feeling by looking at their facial expressions
- Doesn’t show concern (empathy) for others
- Unable to make friends or uninterested in making friends
What are a few communication impairments of children suffering with ASD?
- Common sign
- Range form absent to delayed speech
- May lose language or other social milestones (regression)
- Should have hearing and speech evaluated if delay or regression is noted
- Repeats exactly what others say without understanding the meaning (like a parrot)
- Doesn’t respond to name being called but does respond to other sounds (like a car horn)
- May mix up pronouns (he went to the market, instead of I)
- Often doesn’t seem to want to communicate
- Doesn’t use toys or other objects to represent people or real life in pretend play
- May use gestures instead of words (may also grunt or hum)
- May have a good rote memory
Define rote memory.
Memorization of information based on repetition
What are a few behavioral differences of children suffering with ASD?
- Rocks, spins, sways, twirls fingers, walks on toes for a long time, or flaps hands, stimming
- Likes routines, order, and rituals and have difficulty with change
- Obsession with a few or unusual activities, doing them repeatedly during the day
- Not imitating the actions of others
- Plays with parts of toys instead of the whole toy (wheels)
- Doesn’t appear to feel pain
- May be very sensitive to smells, sounds, lights, textures, and touch
- Unusual use of vision or gaze (looks at objects from unusual angles
- May have intense temper tantrums or show aggression
Define stimming.
self-stimulating behaviors usually involving repetitive movements or sounds
What are a few other conditions children with ASD might have?
- Intellectual disabilities
- Learning disabilities
- ADHD
- Motor coordination problems
- Sleep disorders
- Significant GI symptoms (constipation)
- Seizure disorders
Why might children with ASD be gluten free or sugar free?
To help with GI issues
At what ages will children have standardized screening at well visits for ASD?
- 9 months-developmental screening
- 18 months-developmental + autism (M-CHAT)
- 24 months to 30 months-developmental + autism screening (M-CHAT)
What is considered to be the gold standard for diagnosing ASD?
Autism diagnostic observation schedule (ADOS)