Autism, also known as autism, is a representative disorder of pervasive developmental disorders with a male-to-female ratio of approximately 3 to 4:1, with girls generally having more severe symptoms than boys. Etiology Although the cause of autism is not fully understood, current research suggests that certain risk factors may be associated with the development of autism. The risk factors for autism can be summarized as: genetics, infection and immunity, and physical and chemical stimulation during pregnancy. Clinical manifestations The disorder usually starts within 36 months of age and is characterized by three main core symptoms: social interaction disorders, communication disorders, narrow interests and repetitive behavioral patterns. The child has a qualitative deficit in social interaction. The child lacks eye contact with people (including with parents), lacks interest and response to human voices, does not expect to be picked up in a posture, or is stiff and unwilling to get close to people when picked up. They do not respond to name calling, do not develop attachment to parents, lack interest in socializing or playing with children of the same age, do not interact with children of the same age in an appropriate manner, cannot form partnerships with children of the same age, do not share happiness with others, and do not seek comfort from others when they are unhappy or hurt. Instead, they scream strangely, attack others, hide in corners or do actions that are incomprehensible to others. Communication Disorders (1) Nonverbal Communication Disorders Children with this disorder often cry or scream to express their discomfort or needs. Older children may pull the adult’s hand towards what they want and lack the appropriate facial expressions, and their expressions often appear indifferent. (2) Speech and communication disorders: Children with this disorder have significant speech and communication disorders, including: (1) speech comprehension is impaired to varying degrees; (2) speech development is delayed or non-developed, and some children have expressive speech until 2-3 years of age, but it gradually decreases or even disappears completely; (3) abnormal speech form and content: children often have imitation speech, stereotypical repetition of speech, grammatical structure, personal pronouns are often wrong, and intonation, speech speed, and syllables are often wrong. (4) Impaired verbal ability: Although some children can recite children’s songs and advertisements, they seldom communicate with words, and they do not propose topics, maintain topics, or talk only with stereotyped repetitive phrases, dwelling on the same topic. Children with this disorder are not interested in toys and games that children generally enjoy, but are particularly interested in objects that are not usually toys, such as wheels, bottle caps, and other round, rotatable objects. Some children also develop attachment behaviors to inanimate objects such as plastic bottles and wooden sticks. The child’s behaviors are often stereotypical, such as doing things or playing with toys in the same way, requiring objects to be placed in a fixed location, walking the same route when going out, and eating only a few foods for a long period of time. There are often repetitive movements and strange behaviors, such as jumping repeatedly, staring at the hands in front of the eyes, fluttering or walking on the tips of the feet, etc. 4. Other symptoms About 3/4 of the children with this disorder have mental retardation. About 1/3-1/4 of the children have a combination of epilepsy. Some children with mental retardation may also have “autistic talents”, such as music, calculation, date calculation, mechanical memory and recitation, and are called “idiot scholars”. Treatment Principles of autism treatment: (1) Early detection and early treatment. The earlier the age of treatment, the more significant the improvement; (2) Promote family involvement and make parents partners or participants in the treatment. The child, the child’s health care practitioner, the child’s parents and teachers, the psychologist and the community should be involved in the treatment process to form a comprehensive treatment team; (3) Insist on a comprehensive treatment training program with non-pharmacological treatment as the mainstay and pharmacological treatment as a supplement, with both promoting each other; (4) The treatment program should be individualized, structured and systematic. (4) The treatment program should be individualized, structured and systematic. Treatment should be tailored to the child’s condition and adjusted according to the treatment response; (5) Attention should be paid to the child’s physical health and prevention of other diseases while treatment and training; (6) Persistence in treatment and perseverance. There is no specific drug treatment for autism, and education and rehabilitation training are still the mainstay.