Autism

Autism Assessment and Diagnosis

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Autism Assessment and Diagnosis

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Key Questions

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disability that can cause social, communication and behavioral challenges.

ASD is identified by a broad range, or a "spectrum," of symptoms, which can range from mild to severe.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disability that can cause social, communication and behavioral challenges.

ASD is identified by a broad range, or a "spectrum," of symptoms, which can range from mild to severe.

What is Autism

What Does Autism Mean?

How Clinicians Spot Autism Before Formal Assessment: Symptoms?

What is the best way to test for autism?

Behaviors Associated with Autism

Behaviors that would signal the need for further evaluation include:

• Making a little eye contact or preferring to be alone
• Having difficulty understanding another’s feelings or talking about their own
• Having difficulty expressing their own needs using common words or motions
• Tending not to look at or listen to others/has difficulty relating to others
• Having difficulty sharing fun objects or activities with others or tending not to look at objects shown by others
• Being slow or nonresponsive to others calling their name
• Having difficulty when making conversation with others
• Speaking about a subject of their own interest despite a lack of interest from others
• Displaying facial expressions and body language inconsistent with the conversation
• Speaking with a monotone or sing-song voice
• Having difficulty understanding another’s point of view
• Often preferring not to be held or cuddled
• Not responding to others’ speaking but responding to other sounds
• Struggling to interact with people they are interested in
• Not playing games that involve pretending
• No longer saying words and expressions they once used
• Stimming, or making repetitive or restricted movements, behaviors, or vocal sounds, including unusual behaviors that are self-soothing and self-stimulating
• Melting down emotionally over slight changes in routine or having difficulty maintaining sleep routines
• Being sensitive to sensory input, including texture's feel, loud noises, temperatures, smells, light, and tastes

Those with Autism Also Have Strengths

Behaviors Associated with Autism

Those with Autism Also Have Strengths

Behaviors Associated with Autism

Those with Autism Also Have Strengths

FAQ 1

FAQ 2

Autism Assessment


ADOS-2: The world's most comprehensive ASD measure

  • A clinician's chance to see how the child ot adult interacts socially and how much their behavior looks or does not look like autism.
  • Requires training and takes into consideration the examinee's age, developmental level, and language level.
  • Includes over 100 stimulus items to assess and diagnose ASD beginning at 12 months old.

ADI-R: Parent-caregiver interview

  • Lengthy — takes as long as 2 ½ hours to administer and score.
  • Reveals the examinee's early development, which is critical to an autism evaluation.
  • A clinician makes rating based on what the parent says and is designed to be used in conjuction with the ADOS-2.

SCQ: Screener for the ADI-R

Available Online
  • Both current and lifetime forms have simple cutoff point without nuanced details.
  • Developed from the same author group of the ADOS-2 and ADI-R (because the ADI-R is a long assessment)

SRS-2: Parent and teacher rating scale

  • Parent or teacher, not the clinician, makes the rating.
  • Raters judge how much a particular behavior sounds like the child on a scale of 0-1-2-3-4-5.
  • ASRS and the GARS-3 are rating scales similar to the SRS-2.

CARS2: Clinician rating scale

  • Only rating scale designed to be completed by the clinician.
  • Using the CARS2, the clinician is able to gather information from parents and caregivers.

MIGDAS-2: Diagnostic interview guidelines

  • Qualitative diagnostic interviews centered around a child's preferred areas of interest.
  • Does not have a standarization sample and scores as a typical measure does.
  • Sensory-based process that helps clinicians approach the evaluation, conceptualize it, and gather information together.

Resources

Visit the National Institute of Mental Health’s Autism News Page for the latest news and ASD research.
 
The NIMH also provides free brochures and shareable resources:
Visit the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s Autism Resource Center for more materials.
 
Get access to resources for families, including A Parent’s Guide to Evidence-based Practice and Autism at the National Autism Center.