Learn about autism in one minute

There is a group of children who

Not deaf, but indifferent to the sound;

Not blind, but blind to the surroundings;

Not dumb, but unwilling to speak.

They are the children of the stars,

Live in your own world.

Their strange behavior often annoys their parents and puzzles their peers. They isolate themselves from the outside world, do not like to communicate and interact with others, do not know how to integrate into the group, dare not look people in the eye, focus on the things in their hands, and indulge in their own world...

In fact, these star children are autistic children. "Autism" is also called "autism", which is the abbreviation of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It is a group of developmental disorders characterized by social interaction disorders, narrow interests and repetitive stereotyped behaviors.

How was autism discovered?

In December 2007, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution: starting from 2008, April 2 of each year will be designated as "World Autism Awareness Day" to increase people's understanding of autism, encourage people to send warmth to autistic patients, support more experts to engage in related research, and help autistic patients grow. "Autism" was first proposed by Leo Kanner, an expert at Johns Hopkins University in the United States in 1943. It has been nearly 80 years since the first case of autism appeared in the world. Humanity's understanding of autism and its own responsibility has also taken a historic step.

Are "autism" and "autism" the same?

In reality, the word "Autism" has two translations: "autism" and "self-esteem", which leads to misunderstanding and confusion in practice. When the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Winter Games was in full swing, the Publicity and Culture Department of the China Disabled Persons' Federation issued a notice on the titles of disabled people and their work in publicity and reporting. The notice pointed out that we should use "autism" instead of "self-esteem".

Although China started late in autism research, the term autism has long been recorded in the field of psychiatric research.

Based on the understanding of the characteristics of autism described by Kanner, "extreme autistic aloneness", the translation of autism has long become a commonly accepted medical term in China, recognized and adopted by medical predecessors and famous experts such as Tao Guotai and Yang Xiaoling, and adopted by the Chinese government and seen in all policies and legal documents issued by the Chinese government, and was used by medical and professional literature translators in the 1990s. Today, we look back on history and admire our predecessors. Ensuring the status of the term "autism" precisely reflects our awareness of cultural inheritance and national pride.

What are the causes of autism?

1. Brain damage

Brain damage caused by various factors, including premature birth, difficult labor, neonatal brain injury and meningitis, may increase the incidence of autism.

2. Viral infection during pregnancy

If a mother is infected with some viruses during pregnancy, it will also affect the baby in the womb and increase the risk of autism.

3. Genetic factors

In a survey of all children with autism, 20% were affected by genetic factors.

There is no drug treatment for autism. Only through scientific and systematic educational intervention and training treatment can the child's prognosis be improved. Therefore, early detection and early intervention can significantly improve the child's prognosis.

What is the incidence of autism?

On December 2, 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) once again updated the screening data on autism diagnosis rates. According to statistics from 11 screening sites across the United States, the diagnosis rate of autism in 8-year-old children increased by 24%, from 1/54 in 2016 (2016 data, released in 2020) to 1/44 in 2018 (2018 data, released at the end of 2021), an increase of 24%. This percentage is nearly three times the previous increase rate (an increase of 9.2% in 2016 compared to 2014). In 2014, the prevalence of autism in American children was 2.24%, meaning that 1 in 45 children suffered from autism. By 2016, this number soared to 2.76%, meaning that 1 in 36 children suffered from autism.

In China, a survey in 2013 showed that the incidence of autism was 1%. Statistics in 2017 showed that Hong Kong has the highest incidence of autism in the world, with 1 in every 27 children suffering from autism. The ratio of male to female autism is about 4:1. There are more than 14 million autistic patients in China, including more than 2 million patients under the age of 14, which means that there is 1 autistic patient for every 68 children.

How to detect autistic children early?

Know the early warning behavioral signs of autism in children:

1. No speech: Still unable to speak at 1.5 years old or slow language development;

2. No (less) look: no eye contact or brief eye contact;

3. Should not: do not respond when called, and do what I want;

4. Not (less) refers to: no (lack of) body language;

5. Inappropriateness: Inappropriate use of objects and related sensory abnormalities.

What should we do?

We need to deepen our understanding of autism, understand and sympathize with the difficulties faced by parents of autistic children, avoid blaming parents due to misunderstandings; accept and respect people with autism, do not discriminate or tease them; provide opportunities for people with autism to integrate into society, promote their contact and communication with others, and help them overcome the obstacles brought by autism and the difficulties in community adaptation. Let us join hands to bring warmth and sunshine to people with autism and jointly create a more harmonious and warm society.