Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorder. Dieser Artikel ist nicht verfügbar.Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are common neurodevelopmental disorders characterised by a triad of impairments in reciprocal social interactions, verbal and non-verbal communication deficits with repetitive and stereotyped behaviours. The disorder may adversely impact not just the affected child, but also his/her family members. Currently there is no effective means for prevention, no biomarkers for early diagnosis and no specific treatment approach or a drug that can "cure" the disorder. Interest in ASD has exploded in the past decade following the vast increase in the prevalence of ASD to 1:100-1:150 in the most recent reports. The dramatic increase in ASD cases has been accompanied by an increase in public and professional awareness and an abundance of new research and treatment strategies. Autism is probably not a single disorder, but rather reflects many different disorders with broad behavioural phenotypes causing atypical development.

Joav Merrick, MD, MMedSci, DMSc, (Medical Director, Health Services, Division for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Services, Jerusalem, Israel; Division of Adolescent Medicine, KY Childrens Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Lexington, Kentucky, US; National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Jerusalem, Israel; Division of Pediatrics, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Centers, Mt Scopus Campus, Jerusalem, Israel; School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, US)