Kerra Hirsch, age 16, of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., for question:
WHAT IS AUTISM?
Autism is a rare, severe mental disorder in children. The condition appears as a group of symptoms, the most notable of which is a strange, vacant stare. True autism, which is called "early infantile autism," occurs in about one child in 30,000.
The term autism is also used to refer to other severe forms of mental illness that resemble true autism. But only about one child in 10 who are called autistic has true autism.
About 75 percent of all autistic children are male.
Most autistic babies do not cuddle. They are unresponsive and they remain unyielding as they grow older.
There is a detachment about an autistic child. He does not seem to realize that he is a person. He appears to live in a dream world, acting distant and withdrawn.
A child with autism is extraordinarily intolerant of changes in his physical surroundings. The child may have a severe tantrum if books, toys, furniture or other objects are not in their "correct" place.
Autistic children move gracefully and many are expert climbers. An autistic child can use his fingers and hands skillfully. But many refuse to use their hands. Instead, they take an adult by the wrist and use his hand.
Many children with autism love music and insist on playing the same record over and over again. Many have perfect pitch. After hearing a long piece of music only once, an autistic child may be able to sing or hum the entire piece.
No one knows what causes autism. Leo Kanner, an American psychiatrist who first identified autism in 1943, believed it is an inborn disorder of body chemistry. Most authorities agree.
Researchers in the United States and England have discovered abnormal amounts of some chemicals in the blood and urine of autistic children.
Many researchers have reported successful treatment of some groups of autistic children with large doses of certain of the B vitamins.
Special teaching methods have also brought good results. One such method, called "operant conditioning," rewards the child for each small improvement in his behavior. Teaching autistic children will improve greatly through biochemical and psychological research.
Many autistic children are mute. They never speak, or they utter only a few words during their entire lives. Other autistic children do speak, but they can only repeat what they have heard. Their voices are robotlike.
An autistic child may express the idea of "yes" by repeating the question he was asked, since he does not use the words "I" or "yes." He may also repeat endlessly poems or conversations he has heard. Autistic children who can speak may begin to speak more usefully by the age of 8 or 9.