Autism

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction, verbal and non-verbal communication, and restricted and repetitive behavior. Parents usually notice signs in the first two years of their child's life. These signs often develop gradually, though some children with autism reach their developmental milestones at a normal pace and then regress. The diagnostic criteria require that symptoms become apparent in early childhood, typically before age three.

While autism is highly heritable, researchers suspect both environmental and genetic factors as causes. In rare cases, autism is strongly associated with agents that cause birth defects.Controversies surround other proposed environmental causes; for example, the vaccine hypotheses have been disproven. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their synapses connect and organize; how this occurs is not well understood. It is one of three recognized disorders in the autism spectrum (ASDs), the other two being Asperger syndrome, which lacks delays in cognitive development and language, and pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified (commonly abbreviated as PDD-NOS), which is diagnosed when the full set of criteria for autism or Asperger syndrome are not met.

Autism (journal)

Autism is a peer-reviewed medical journal covering research on autism and the autism spectrum. The editor-in-chief is David M. Mandell (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine). The journal was established in 1997 and is published eight times a year by Sage Publications in association with the National Autistic Society.

History

The journal was established in 1997 by Rita Jordan, Patricia Howlin, Geraldine Peacock, and Sage Publications. The following persons have been editor-in-chief of this journal: Rita Jordan (University of Birmingham, 1997–2006)), Patricia Howlin (Institute of Psychiatry, London, 1997–2007), Dermot M. Bowler (City University, London, 2006-2012), and David M. Mandell (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 2012–present).

Abstracting and indexing

The journal is abstracted and indexed in MEDLINE, Scopus, and the Social Science Citation Index. According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2013 impact factor of 3.500.

References

Epidemiology of autism

The epidemiology of autism is the study of factors affecting autism spectrum disorders (ASD). A 2012 review of global prevalence estimates of autism spectrum disorders found a median of 62 cases per 10,000 people. There is a lack of evidence from low- and middle-income countries though.

ASD averages a 4.3:1 male-to-female ratio. The number of children known to have autism has increased dramatically since the 1980s, at least partly due to changes in diagnostic practice; it is unclear whether prevalence has actually increased; and as-yet-unidentified environmental risk factors cannot be ruled out. The risk of autism is associated with several prenatal factors, including advanced parental age and diabetes in the mother during pregnancy. ASD is associated with several genetic disorders and with epilepsy.

Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder. Many causes have been proposed, but its theory of causation is still questionable and ultimately unknown. Autism is believed to be largely inherited, although the genetics of autism are complex and it is unclear which genes are responsible. Little evidence exists to support associations with specific environmental exposures.