A group of conditions affect how your child develops in similar ways. Doctors call this group autistic spectrum disorder. A spectrum is just a range.

Autistic spectrum disorder includes autism and several other conditions.

If your child has Asperger's syndrome, your child has intelligence at the normal level and starts to speak at the usual age. But they still have problems communicating and getting along with people.

Asperger's syndrome is often called atypical autism. You may also hear this called a pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified or PDD-NOS for short.

Children with atypical autism may have problems speaking and getting along with people. But they don't have all the signs of autism. For example, they may not do the same activity over and over.

The problems that children with atypical autism have may not be clear until they are older than 3 years. With autism, the problems are usually clear before this age.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
World Health Organization.
The ICD-10 classification of mental and behavioural disorders: diagnostic criteria for research.
1993. Available at http://www.who.int/classifications/icd/en (accessed on 21 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

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Some doctors think atypical autism and Asperger's syndrome are the same thing. But others think they are different.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Volkmar FR, Lord C.
Diagnosis and definition of autism and other pervasive developmental disorders.
In: Volkmar FR (editor). Autism and pervasive developmental disorders. Cambridge University Press, New York; 1998.

 

 

 

 

 

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Other conditions also can affect how your child develops. For example, some children have learning problems that seem like autism. It may be hard to tell the difference. This is especially so if your child has a learning problem that involves speaking or using numbers.

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