Exceptional Children and Disability Information
Autism
Diagnosis
- General article including diagnosis from the National Institute of Mental Health: A detailed booklet that describes symptoms, causes, and treatments, with information on getting help and coping.
- Diagnosing autism: There are no medical tests for diagnosing autism. An accurate diagnosis must be based on observation of the individual's communication, behavior, and developmental levels. However, because many of the behaviors associated with autism are shared by other disorders, various medical tests may be ordered to rule out or identify other possible causes of the symptoms being exhibited.
- Diagnostic criteria: The following criterion for Autistic Disorder are from the 2000 Revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR).
- Diagnostic criteria for Asperger’s Syndrome: The following criterion for Asperger's Syndrome are from the 2000 Revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition-Text (DSM IV-TR).
- Tests used in diagnosing PDDs: Hundreds of standardized tests, questionnaires, and observation plans are available for rating behaviors, abilities, and other factors that could be related to pervasive developmental disorders. The lists in the next sections provide a little information about some of the most commonly encountered tests, but they are by no means complete.
- Interesting website that contains a case study report and all the auxiliary Reports-good reference: an actual clinic report on a child with Autism.
