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DISCLAIMER
 Information disseminated by Autism South Africa is for information purposes only.
The onus rests with the reader to explore and investigate the relevant information and alternatives for each individual.
Information sent out does not imply that Autism South Africa underwrites or endorses any particular therapy, intervention, method or medication. Autism South Africa assumes no responsibility for the use made of any information provided herein.
AN INTRODUCTION TO EARLY INTERVENTION
There is a broad range of therapies for Autism Spectrum Disorders such as Autism and Asperger's syndrome, but the effectiveness of each varies dramatically from child to child. Progress on medical and behavior modification remedies has been hindered significantly by disagreements over the nature and causes of Autism Spectrum Disorders, and by a relative lack of effective therapies thus far recognized by medical authorities. The situation is further complicated by parents who have found a particular treatment effective, and may advocate this as a cure-all for Autism, Aspergers syndrome, and other Autism Spectrum Disorders.
While there is no cure for Autism Spectrum Disorders, research indicates that intensive educational and behavioural interventions can have a major effect when started as early as possible (ie. two years of age and on).
WHY EARLY INTERVENTION IS CRUCIAL FOR AUTISTIC SPECTRUM DISORDERS
If a child experiences a developmental delay, this can compound over time. The principle of early intervention is to provide appropriate therapies to minimize these delays and maximize their chances of reaching normal milestones in development.
The focus of early intervention coordinates therapies to:
• Build better communication and social interaction skills
• Manage obsessive, repetitive and challenging behaviors
• develop activities of daily living skills (hygiene, dressing, eating, toileting etc.)
• Improve physical coordination
• Teaching joint attention skills, play, and imitation skills
• Manage sensory issues.
Study: Early autism intervention in toddlers is effective
AUTISM  

November 30, 2009|By Miriam Falco, CNN

Researchers have shown for the first time that if a child is diagnosed with autism as early as 18 months of age, offering the toddler age-appropriate, effective therapy can lead to raised IQ levels and improved language skills and behavior.

"Early intervention can be very effective for toddlers with autism," says Geraldine Dawson, chief science officer of the advocacy group Autism Speaks, and one of the two lead authors of a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Since 2007, pediatricians have been told to screen 18-month-old children for autism. But what the next step is when such a young child is diagnosed has not been clear

Read more
Early Intervention
Is Key to Easing Autism's Effects

Imagine trying to get around in a foreign country without a good map, adequate communication skills, or the ability to perceive others' feelings. Now imagine that such an existence is how many people with autism and related developmental disorders often experience the world.
Children with autism typically lack basic social impulses, resulting in problems communicating or interacting with people. They're stumped when it comes to reading body language or even making friends. In some cases, they may spend their lives speechless. Autism and autistic spectrum disorders have many faces, however. The problems vary with respect to when symptoms begin to appear, the severity of symptoms, and the presence of other disabilities, such as mental retardation or severe language impairment.

What causes autism is unknown. What is known is that the reported incidence is rising steadily. Nationally, autistic spectrum disorders may affect as many as one in 500 people, making the conditions more common than childhood cancer or Down syndrome. The increased incidence could reflect a real upsurge, improved diagnosis, better reporting and record keeping, or a combination of these factors. Still, education is the single most common and effective treatment for the disorders.
Early intervention
Early intervention refers to doing things as early as possible to address your child’s symptoms. Early intervention for children with ASD is made up of therapies and services:
Therapies (also called interventions) are the programs or sessions aimed at helping to promote your child's development.
Services are the places and organisations that offer these therapies. A service might provide one therapy or several types.
Why start early?
Research says that starting intervention as young as possible is most effective in helping the development of children with ASD. You can even get things rolling before having a diagnosis.
For example, problems with communication are a major source of tantrums and other difficult behaviours for children with ASD. If children can’t communicate their needs or understand others, extreme behaviours are a way they can express themselves or gain attention. But if they learn to communicate effectively as early as possible, they won’t need to engage in these behaviours quite so much. Another reason for starting early is that it can help children with early brain development – which has been linked to possible causes of ASD.
Early Intervention in Autism
Christina M. Corsello, PhD
We now know that professionals can diagnose children with autism when they are as young as 2 years of age (Lord, 1995). Screening and the role of the pediatrician have become even more critical as we have recognized the stability of early diagnosis over time and the importance of early intervention. At this point, experts working with children with autism agree that early intervention is critical. There is professional consensus about certain crucial aspects of treatment (intensity, family involvement, focus on generalization) and empirical evidence for certain intervention strategies.
However, there are many programs developed for children with autism that differ in philosophy and a lack of research comparing the various intervention programs. Most of the programs for children with autism that exist are designed for children of preschool age, and not all are widely known or available. While outcome data are published for some of these programs, empirical studies comparing intervention programs are lacking. In this review, existing intervention programs and empirical studies on these programs will be reviewed, with a particular emphasis on the birth to 3 age group. Key words: autism, early intervention, treatment
BACKGROUND
Autism is a developmental disorder that was first described by Leo Kanner in 1943, in a classic article that included case studies of 11 children. Since that time, the diagnostic criteria have evolved based on continued observations and research, resulting in the current criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition or DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) and the International Classification of Diseases or ICD-10 (World Health Organization, 1993). At the present time, autistic disorder is defined in terms of qualitative impairments in social interaction and communication, and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behaviors, interests, and activities, with impairments in one of these areas prior to the age of 3 years.
In addition to autistic disorder, there are 4 other specific diagnoses included within the autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) category, which is a term now preferred by most parents and professional organizations (Filipek From the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Corresponding author: Christina M. Corsello, PhD, University of Michigan, 1111 East Catherine St, 2nd Floor, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (e-mail: um.autism@umich.edu).
et al., 2000; Lord & McGee, 2001). Included among them are 2 disorders that are defined
by a regression in skills: Rett syndrome and childhood disintegrative disorder. These will not be the focus of this article. Recently, a specific gene has been linked with Rett syndrome (Cheadle et al, 2000).