Expert: Ettina - 9/14/2008

Question
hi i have 2 and a half year old twin boys, they say only a few words like pop plane dinner and cake. They rarley seem interested in playing with toys exept to try to smash them, and i have never witnessed them really have any imaginative play.
They have been potty trained and are fine until the moment they are left alone ie put to bed , and then they spread poo over themselves each other up walls they even throw it on the celing. Also each night they pull the mattresses off there beds and before we had to completely seal it up used to manage to squash their blackets clothes and any toys through the top window and throw them in the garden.
They can be affectionate but its mainly when it suits them, and they have awful temper tantrums if they dont get what they want right away including banging their heads against the floor or walls.
I was wondering if any of these symptoms appear to match a disorder, i have a six year old also and she is fine.
many thanks

Answer
They certainly sound autistic. I'm not qualified to give a diagnosis, particularly of two children I haven't met, but that's my opinion.
I'm assuming they're identical twins? With identical twins, if one twin is autistic, there's a 90% chance the other twin will be as well. Anecdotally, the autistic identical twins I've met have also been much more similar to each other than would be explained just by them both being autistic - they're at similar functioning levels, with similar quirks - which also appears to be the case with your sons.
I recommend you talk to a psychologist about them - they'll be able to determine if your sons are in fact on the autistic spectrum. Be aware, though, that it can sometimes be tricky to diagnose very young children. In a couple of years, they might be quite different from what they're like now.