Experts say that early detection and intervention of ASD is always critical. While there is no specific test to determine a diagnosis of ASD, doctors may often perform a test for the Fragile X Syndrome; it is often linked to the diagnosis of ASD. However, the best information for doctors usually comes from the information given from the child's caregivers. .
Symptoms .
Symptoms of ASD are different from child to child, but often consist of problems with communication, social interactions, and repetitive behavior. Some children have more severe symptoms of ASD than others. The variation of different symptoms and the severity of each case is why autism is considered a, "Spectrum "disorder" (National institute of child health and human development, 2005). Communication is one of one of the many tribulations that children with ASD experience. Some children with ASD do not communicate at all, and remain mute throughout their lives. Other children may have delayed language skills until around age 5. Children who do develop language skills often use repetitive phrases to communicate, and often are not able to express their thoughts into meaningful sentences. Metaphors are also difficult for children with ASD to understand. It has been proposed that difficulties with metaphors, may be attributed to difficulty in processing language in the right hemisphere of the brain (Woods, Mahdavi, Ryan, 2013). Children who have more advanced language skills may talk in phrases, but also tend to speak in a high pitched tone or use a robot-like tone of voice. More advance language skills does not always necessarily mean that the child can or will carry on a conversation, most times these children will only talk about a topic of their interest.
While many children with ASD can develop some type of language skills, their progress is usually not to a normal level. Not only do children with ASD have a problem communicating verbally, but also nonverbally.