![]() ( Learn more about requesting an evaluation.) Risk Factors Contact your local school's preschool special education team to request an evaluation. ![]() ( Learn more about early intervention and find local contact information.) If your child is over the age of 3, you can get an evaluation through your local school (even if your child does not go there). If your child is under the age of 3 years, you can obtain an evaluation through your local early intervention system. Most parents start with their pediatrician who is checking on developmental milestones. In some ambiguous cases, the diagnosis of autism may be deferred, but otherwise an early diagnosis can greatly improve a child's functioning by providing the family early access to supportive resources in the community. This evaluation involves interviewing the parent/caregiver, observing, and interacting with the child in a structured manner, and sometimes conducting additional tests to rule out other disorders. Parent/caregiver/teacher concerns about the child's behavior should lead to a specialized evaluation by a developmental pediatrician, pediatric psychologist, child neurologist and/or a child & adolescent psychiatrist. Arranging things, often toys, in a very particular manner.Stereotypical movements such as hand flapping, rocking, spinning.Sensory hypersensitivity, e.g., aversion to loud noises.Difficulty tolerating changes in routine and new experiences.Expecting others to be equally interested in those subjects.Being overly focused on niche subjects to the exclusion of others.Inflexibility of behavior, extreme difficulty coping with change.Restricted interests and repetitive behaviors may include 1: Difficulty making friends or keeping them.Lack of proficiency with use of non-verbal gestures.Difficulty appreciating their own & others' emotions.Decreased sharing of interests with others.Social communication deficits may include 1: In some cases, the functional impairment related to autism may be mild and not apparent until the child starts school, after which their deficits may be pronounced when amongst their peers. However, symptoms typically become more consistently visible by the time a child is 2 or 3 years old. Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum DisordersĮarly signs of this disorder can be noticed by parents/caregivers or pediatricians before a child reaches one year of age. While autism is considered a lifelong disorder, the degree of impairment in functioning because of these challenges varies between individuals with autism. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex developmental condition involving persistent challenges with social communication, restricted interests, and repetitive behavior.
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