Diagnosis of children under the age of three with autism

Autism Diagnosis in Children Under the Age of Three

I accept that autism should be diagnosed in children under the age of three, and some manifestations of autism have been found to occur in children under the age of three. Autism is a difficult disorder to correctly detect in older children, and it is much more difficult in children under the age of three, where it can be misdiagnosed. However, research and practice have shown that nurses and doctors can correctly detect these early signs of autism in order for the children to begin proper schooling and preparation. Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that results in persistent deficits in the individual’s social communication as well as social interaction that is often accompanied by restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior, activities, and interests. The rationale for my support as to conducting autism diagnosis under the age of three is outlined in the subsequent paragraphs. However, in a nutshell, Autism should be diagnosed at an early stage (under the age of three) due to the following; early diagnosis enables early mitigation, proper diagnosis is crucial for ease of acceptance and preparation by family members, with advances in technology the diagnosis before the age of three years shall become relevant in cases of termination of pregnancies due to undesirable traits (Strauss).

Early Mitigation

When an ailment is diagnosed early enough, it is often much easier to enact effective mitigation measures. In some cases, this can be the difference between a lifelong illness and a short term preventable illness.as much as autism does not have a cure and there is no known cause, there are well-established methods that help the nurses and families to handle the child. On clear example is when it is considered that autism is often hard to be distinguished from certain social perceptions such as stupidity and arrogance. Children in whom autism is diagnosed later in life often find the duration before diagnosis hard and unbearable. No one understands them yet everyone expects of them what they apparently are not able to deliver. Mitigation measures in autism currently take the form of selecting special schools that are designed to accommodate the autistic child. The earlier the child land in these institutions, the sooner they can improve their status and get a conducive environment in which to thrive. At this point, it is important to note that autism shall likely affect the individual well into their adulthood thus making early preparations and adaptations necessary. Since the condition is marked with slow learning and adaptation, it is of utmost importance to start the therapy treatment early.

Additional Research

Diagnosing autism under the age of 3 allows for research to be conducted on the condition by the nurses and doctors. It is much easier to study a condition while it is in its infancy rather than at developed stages whereby one would be studying the symptoms and reverse engendering them to recreate the potential cause. The former is desirable in the medical industry; striking the metal while it is still hot and malleable. Additionally, in the event that a cure is found, it shall be much easier to deal with the earlier diagnosed cases than the advanced cases, this is often characteristic of new cures in the scientific field. As time goes by, several medical conditions tend to advance and toughen thus resisting treatment. Early diagnosis is a sort of plan to cut the conditions to the chase. As a matter of fact, there is research that is being conducted currently on matters of autism sand how a cure can be developed. Early diagnosis helps in this research whereby it affords the clinicians the opportunity to majors on the disease in its infancy and studies it through adulthood. This may not provide an immediate cure, but shall definitely function towards developing a cure or a means of mitigating the disease from an individual’s perspective; this means that the mitigation measure that can help directly reduce the severity of the condition in the individual by either slowing it down or stalling it much like asthma has mitigation measure in the form of inhalers.

Preparation of Family Members

Autism is a lifelong condition that can drastically alter a family’s way of living. From this perspective, it is fair that the family is accorded the option to conduct a diagnosis of the disease and find out what is in store for them. A positive diagnosis would be bad enough as is but a delay in this diagnosis can put the family’s affairs in disarray financially and in terms of harmony. Early diagnosis enables the parents to be able to organize their financing for the lifelong condition in their child. Additionally, it helps them look for appropriate help in advance. Looking for a school to enroll the child can be a hectic endeavor that requires time, commitment and outright passion. For working class parents, this can be a huge strain as they have to decide whether they should move to accommodate the child’s education in cases where there is no institution around. After finding the institution, there is the matter of paying the prohibitively expensive fees, an example of such schools is the Montessori schools that can accommodate such students. From this point of view, we can clearly see that an early diagnosis is exceedingly important as a delayed diagnosis can result in an undesirable scenario that could leave everyone unable to help the child which would be tragic (Stone, Lee and Ashford).

Pregnancy Termination

Last but not least, technology has rapidly advanced to the extent that illnesses such as autism can be detected before birth and appropriate action taken. There are jurisdictions where euthanasia allowed and when parents feel that they do not want to bring forth a baby that would likely suffer more than they enjoy their lives, they can request for termination of the pregnancies. This example is appropriate as it brings forth the importance of early screening for autism.

Conclusion

It is mandatory to test autism in children under the age of three from the sakes of everyone in the society. This is due to the significance of the tests in furthering research, preparing the parents and families for the condition, giving the parents of unborn babies the option to proceed with the pregnancies or not and finally the value of mitigating the condition in advance. I have learned that autism characteristics are exhibited early in children, as early as 2 years and below. This makes it an opportunity for quick diagnosis of the illness which can go a long way in ensuring effective mitigation.

Works Cited

Stone, W L, et al. Can Autism be Diagnosed Accurately in Children Under 3 years? February 1999. Web. 11 March 2017.

Strauss, Laura. Autism Spectrum Disorder. 2004. Web. 11 March 2017.