health

Though defined as a disorder for less than a century, autism has
certainly existed for a much longer period of time. The term autism
itself appears to have been coined independently by Hans Asperger
(1906–1980), an Austrian pediatrician who first used it in a German-language
medical journal in 1938, and Leo Kanner (1894–1981), an Austrian psychiatrist
who had moved to the United States and published a paper on what he called
infantile autism in 1943. Since the 1940s, the definition
has expanded to include children who might
have simply been described as odd or strange in the 1960s, as well as children
who are severely disabled by the disorder.
With regard to social interaction, children with autism are commonly
described as loners who are unaware of other people’s feelings. They may
not respond to their names or make eye contact, and they dislike being
held or cuddled. In terms of behaviors, autistic children prefer sameness
and are upset by change. They may make repetitive gestures like flapping
their hands, spinning, or rocking back and forth. They are often unusually
sensitive to lights, noises, or touch, but at the same time they may be completely
unaware of danger. Many autistic children seem to be insensitive to
pain and do not tell their parents when they are hurt or sick.
Language skills are the third major area in which autistic children are
different from others. They often start talking later than other children and
may speak in a mechanical, sing-song, or robot-like voice. A child with
autism may repeat someone else’s words or sentences but may not know
how to form a sentence of their own. He or she may have trouble asking
for something in words, using gestures or pointing instead.
In some cases children with autism do not refer to themselves as “I” or
“me,” but use their names instead.