Very early signs of autism: Recent research

Symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorders begin to manifest during the first two years of life; however, there has been limited evidence regarding type and timing of symptom onset. Past research, often retrospective parent interviews and analysis of home movies has confirmed early developmental differences in infants who went on to have a diagnosis of autism. These differences have included children failing to adopt anticipatory postures such as reaching out to be picked up, less visual attention to social stimuli, less smiling in response to others, less vocalization and less object exploration. Other studies have found that parents were also concerned about an unusual rate of progress in their children such as delays in reaching developmental milestones, an apparent slowing of development such as first words not following babbling and loss of previously acquired skills. Regression has been reported in various studies in 20-40 % of cases (words, vocalization, non-verbal communication skills, social dyadic interactio