Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects how an individual learns, processes, behaves, and connects and communicates with others. The signs and characteristics of ASD can vary greatly, but there are two main aspects of development professionals consider in an ASD evaluation. As per the DSM-5, these are:

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Criteria A: Persistent Deficits in Social Communication and Social Interaction

• Social-emotional reciprocity: Difficulty with back-and-forth conversations, sharing emotions or interests, or responding to social interactions

• Nonverbal communicative behaviours: Problems with eye contact, body language, understanding or using gestures, and facial expressions

• Developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships: Difficulty making friends, adjusting behaviour for different social settings, or showing a lack of interest in peers

 

Criteria B: Restricted, Repetitive Patterns of Behaviour, Interests, or Activities

• Stereotyped or repetitive movements/speech: Repetitive use of objects, body movements (e.g., hand flapping) or repetitive speech (e.g., echolalia)

• Insistence on sameness: Inflexible adherence to routines, rigid thinking, distress at small changes, or ritualized patterns of behaviour

• Highly restricted, fixated interests: Interest on focused interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus

• Sensory sensitivities: Over- or under-reactivity to sensory input (e.g., sound, touch) or unusual interest in sensory aspects of the environment

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The DSM-5 also states that these symptoms must be present in the early developmental period. However, this is with the acknowledgement that while some individuals on the autism spectrum can show clear signs within the first few months of life, others may not have symptoms that manifest fully until much later. This can be due to social demands not exceeding the individuals capacity until later (for example, challenges only becoming apparent when they enter school and begin interacting with other children outside of close family). 

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There are three levels of severity for ASD: Level 1 - "Requiring Support", Level 2 - "Requiring Substantial Support", and Level 3 - "Requiring Very Substantial Support." As you can imagine, these levels represent the amount of support an individual will need as well as how severely their symptoms impair their ability to function.