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One up on Autism

Learn the Signs and Act Early

By Teri Brown

"It is important for parents to remember that autism does not come in one package," says Dr. Landa. "When identifying the early signs of autism, we need to evaluate the whole child rather than one single characteristic or sign."

With that said, there are a few key behavioral domains that parents should monitor as early predictors of autism:

• Reduced levels of eye contact
• Reduced frequency of socially directed babbling and vocalization
• Unusual interest in parts of toys or using toys in repetitive ways
• Infrequent initiation of social interaction
• Infrequent showing and giving of objects
• Infrequent "checking in" to see if an adult is looking at what the child is attentive to (i.e., looking at the object-adult-object in a three-way shift of gaze)
• Infrequent imitation of what others are doing while still looking at the person to be imitated and smiling
• Difficulty understanding the intent of others when they point out an object or action

Dr. Landa suggests that any time a child becomes less interactive, seems to have lost speech or otherwise shows signs of developmental regression, parents should inform their doctor. "If you are a parent, no one knows your child better than you do," says Dr. Landa. "If you have concerns about your child's development, ask your family physician to refer you to a specialist or self-refer your child to a facility with experts in the field of autism."

For a list of normal developmental signs visit www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/actearly.