Expert: James Michael Roan - 7/26/2006

Question

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Followup Toyou asked what my son failed on the questionair. He failed on Q2. he doesnt take interest in other children, Q5never pretends, Q8doesnt play properly with small toys, Q9, never brings objects over to me, Q10 never looks me in eye for more than second or two,Q11, is oversentive to noise, Q13, doesnt imitate me,q15, doesn't look at items i point at, q16, he can't walk,q17 doesn't look at things i'm looking at, q18, he does look at his hands moving near his face quite a bit, not as much as he used to though,q19, he doesnt try to attract my attention to what hes doing,q20 sometimes i do wonder if he's deaf as he blanks people,q21he doesnt understand a lot of what people say to him,Q23 he doesnt check my reaction when faced with something unfamiliar.

Question -
I asked you if you thought my two year son had autism, and you sent me two links, one a questionaire and the other the results. well i completed it and he failed 15 of the 23 questions. I did notice on one of the other questions that a developmental Paediatrician is usually involved with children and fortunatly my son is under one of these, i just so worry about my son. I do go to see the paediatrican every few months, so perhaps she is keeping him under observation. Sam's older brother is autistic, so at least i'm prepared for what it's like, it's a bit daunting though. What do you make of results??

Answer -
Hi Sarah;

I know this must be terribly stressful for you. Please keep in mind that although we are seeing more and more children and diagnosing them with autism, it has been my experience that each case is less severe, in general, than children seen in previous years.

Sarah, make sure you have your son evaluated by a team of professionals experienced in diagnosing autism spectrum disorders as soon as possible. Then, get advice from myself or some other trusted professional, on how to turn that assessment data into meaningful intervention services. What country do you live in?

If you give me the items on the M-CHAT your son failed, I can give you better feedback.

Kind Regards,
James

Answer
Hi Sarah;

These are classic indicators of an autistic spectrum disorder. What country do you live in? If your pediatrician does not see autism then ask for a referral immediately to a team expert in this area. Early intervention is essential for him to make the gains he needs to be independent later on.

Let me know what country you live in.

Kind Regards,
James