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Autism
by Dr. Rajesh Shah
Definition: Autism is
a complex neurological disorder detected in children in
their initial three years of life, which is result of
impaired functioning of the brain, expressing itself in the
form of inability for social and communication skills,
impaired intellectual faculty and hence affecting the
developmental of the child. The exact cause behind autism is
not yet fully understood.
Estimated 1.5 million American children and adults, over 1.7
million children in India and about 0.2% of the world
population is affected by this disorder, affecting all races
almost equally.
Causes of Autism: There
are structural and functional changes in the brain in the
patients with autism. However, the exact cause for these
changes are not fully understood.
Some of the triggering factors considered responsible for
Autism are:
- Genetic predisposition
- Exposure to environmental chemicals
- Intake of some drugs, medicines during pregnancy
- Metabolic imbalance
- Vaccinations
Symptoms of autism:
Autism can present with a wide spectrum of symptoms, also in
varied severity, mild, moderate to severe. The symptoms may
present in different combinations. The major symptoms relate
with:
- Marked deficits in communication and social interaction
- Language impairment
- Preoccupation with fantasy
- Abnormal behavior, such as repetitive acts and excessive
possessiveness to certain objects such as car, doll, keys
- Intellectual impairment
The common end symptoms could be some or many of the
following:
- Annoying obstinacy in behavior
- Poor verbal expression, uses gesture to point out for his
needs
- Repeating words or phrases
- Laughing, crying without apparent cause
- Prefers solitude
- Throws Tantrums
- Difficulty in social interaction with his age or elders
- No eye contact while communication
- Unresponsive teaching
- Failure to perceive fears of danger, leading to jumping
from high place, playing with pointed objects
- physical hyper-activity or under-activity
- Underdeveloped fine motor skills
- Not responsive to verbal instructions with normal hearing
- Spinning objects
- Inappropriate possessiveness to objects
- Over-sensitivity or under-sensitivity to pain
- Screaming and shouting out of proportion
- Repeats the same words (echolalia)
It may be noted that autism affects the developmental of the
intellectual faculties. The autistic children are able to
express love and affection and also can respond to love.
Diagnosis of Autism:
There are no laboratory tests for autism. The diagnosis is
arrived at by clinical evaluation and a detail developmental
case history of the child. Psychological evaluation may be
carried out by a professional with expertise in handing such
cases. There are several Autism screening tests to conclude
the diagnosis.
Homeopathic Treatment of Autism:
The Homeopathic approach to handling chronic disorders being
totalistic and aiming at treating the genetic tendencies
with a well strategic management, offers effective treatment
for autism and related disorders.
The homoeopathic case evaluation of the child with autism
incorporates the detail study of the family history of
serious diseases, which are known to form the genetic ground
for autism. The case analysis also takes into account
impaired functions in terms of behavior, social skills,
communication, speech, tantrums, etc.
The commonly homeopathic medicines indicated for autism are
about twenty in number. The exact medicine, its combination
with other support medicines, its dose and repetition depend
on the case history. The medicines are essentially safe and
absolutely non-toxic.
In our study at our center, we have observed encouraging
results in autism children when treated with homeopathy for
over six months. The treatment may require to be continued
for over one year, depending on the severity of the
presentation. The homeopathic medicines can be combined with
other traditional measures.
Related condition:
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD)
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