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Unfortunately there is still no exact ‘cure’ for autism. And moreover there is also no ‘all in one treatment’ that can be used for all patients with autism -- in other words, each patient typically needs specific treatments to meet his/her requirement as well. In general, the range of treatments for autism in children can be overwhelming.
Though there is still no exact cure, but the early diagnosis of autism is so helpful for patients to get a significantly different improvement (will be so useful for patients to get their full potential during their treatment and therapy). You may also be interested to know more about the very early signs of autism in children, before continuing!
Diagnosis and tests for autism
It is so recommended to have regularly scheduled well-child visits or regularly scheduled checkups -- the recommendation from “AAP” (the American Academy of Pediatrics). This idea is so helpful for the doctor to be able to monitor the condition of your child, which then so helpful to catch /identify any sign of any health problem (including for autism) as earlier as possible.
Generally, making a diagnosis of autism is not easy, because there is no any specific medical test to confirm whether or not a patient has autism. Some common crucial points that are analyzed by doctor to make a diagnosis may include: behavioral assessments, physical assessments, communication skills, social skills, etc.
To make a clearly diagnosis, doctors may also perform some lab tests if patient has specific circumstances which may include:
- MRI (Magnetic Resonance Image)! Sometimes this procedure is needed if there is certain symptom of difference in the structure of the patient’s brain.
- EEG (Electroencephalograph)! It may be required if patients have signs of seizures!
- A procedure to analyze chromosome (chromosomal analysis)! It may be needed if there are signs of intellectual disabilities.
Current treatment for autism
The major goal of autism’s treatment is intended to improve /increase the overall patient’s ability to function more optimally.
The treatment is usually also adjusted /tailored to each patient needs and the patient’s available family resources. This is purposed to respond the symptoms & behaviors of patient that usually change over time. Generally, the optimal result is reached from the highly structured & specialized treatment.
Furthermore, your healthcare providers should be able to explore more resources in the local area that may also be helpful to encourage the success rate of the treatment. A strategy that addresses helping the patient’s parents and improving social, adaptive, communication, behavioral, and learning aspects of patient’s life will usually be most successful.
The following are some current strategies /treatments for autism in children -- according to AAP:
Behavioral management and training (communication therapies)
As the name suggests, this strategy is more focused to teach patient (not only children, but all ages of individuals with autism) on how to appropriately communicate with others, which then eventually intended to improve patient’s adaption skills and reduce some behavior problems. And before beginning these behavioral interventions -- the daily environment, behavior, and functional abilities of a child with autism must be assessed correctly.
A specific program of behavioral training & management should be planned as well in order to meet the child’s needs. Furthermore to improve more positive behavior, both behavioral management and behavioral training should also involve some positive reinforcements.
To get best results, these behavioral interventions should be highly structured, and also implied consistently. Individuals who have a close contact with patient (such as parent, caregivers, teacher, and family members) also should be trained on how to interact /give the appropriately behavioral interventions.
There are some treatment approaches for behavioral training and management that have been developed -- some of them are:
- “Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children” or TEACCH! It is a kind of treatment approach that uses the adjustment of environment to respond the patient’s needs -- not the patient to the environment!
- ABA or “Applied Behavior Analysis”! This method uses more behavior rewarded instead of behavior ignored. For instance, child is asked to do some short simple tasks, and then he/she are rewarded when he/she successfully completed the tasks. Discus more with your healthcare providers for more in-depth information!
Medications
When it comes to improving the autism symptoms (especially for the core symptoms), there are no many choices of current medicines. But for certain conditions, some medicines may be required.
Some of medicines that are prescribed by your doctor /healthcare providers may include; antipsychotic medicines (for certain problems of behavior that occur with autism), SSRIs “Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors” and antidepressants (to treat /prevent depression or anxiety).
Specialized /educational therapies
These therapies should be involved in various aspects of the patient’s treatment program, because they are so essential to manage autism. Specialized therapies may include physical, occupational, and speech therapy.
To improve the disabilities /deficiencies in motor & coordination skills, occupational & physical therapy is current option. Occupational therapy is also intended to improve the ability of patient to use his/her senses (such as smell, touch, sound, heating, and sight).
Speech therapy is intended to improve the ability of child with autism to use language skills, which will be very important to improve the social skills. Overall, educational therapies should be highly structured to reach the best result!
Parent training
If you have a child with autism, you need to prepare yourself for better result of the treatment! Even, parent has a significant contribution to the successful of the treatment. And as mentioned before, other people who have a close contact with your child also should be trained -- at least they know what they should do to support the treatment!
Family & parent education is essential and helpful to decrease family stress, and also useful to improve a patient’s functioning. Contact an autism group or ask your healthcare providers for more in-depth information about autism and more advices to manage the autism symptoms.
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Reference: MayoClinic and WebMD
