Infantile Autism Reviewed: A Decade of Research

TLDR

The relationship of infantile autism to other developmental disorders and mental retardation remains unclear, with perceptual, cognitive, and language deficits central yet mechanistic origins unknown, and early theories positing a neurobiological defect. Future research aims to conduct extensive comparative studies between autistic and nonautistic brain‑dysfunctional children to clarify behavioral profiles and test neurobiological hypotheses. A decade‑long review examined infantile autism across classification, diagnosis, demographics, genetics, cognition, neurobiology, pharmacology, and behavioral/educational treatments. Research confirms infantile autism as a developmental disorder with severe, largely permanent intellectual and behavioral deficits, greater brain dysfunction than typical peers, and a best‑practice systematic behavioral/educational treatment, yet prognosis for self‑supportive adulthood remains poor, while parents show no psychopathology that could induce the disorder.

Abstract

Progress in the study of infantile autism over the past 10 years was reviewed in terms of classification and diagnosis, relation to other disorders, demographics, parental characteristics, genetics, intelligence, language, perceptual processes, behavioral characteristics, neurobiological, biochemical and pharmacological aspects, behavioral/educational treatment methodologies, prognosis, and theoretical considerations. This decade's research led to the now generally accepted position that infantile autism is a type of developmental disorder accompanied by severe and, to a large extent, permanent intellectual/behavioral deficits. However, its relationship to other forms of developmental disorders and to mental retardation remains to be delineated. Perceptual/cognitive/language defects appear central to the autistic syndrome, but the specific underlying mechanisms are unknown. Most studies indicate that autistic children have more signs of brain dysfunction than do normal children and about the same number as mentally retarded children. The overwhelming evidence suggests that the treatment of choice for maximal benefit to autistic children is a systematic, intrusive behavioral/educational approach. Yet, in spite of significant gains in almost all children treated, the typical prognostic picture is poor in terms of achieving self-supportive adulthood. The parents of autistic children have been found to be essentially similar to parents of children with organic brain disorders, and manifest no psychopathology which conceivably could induce the disorder. The vast majority of theoretical articles appearing in the 1970s proposed some form of neurobiological defect as the causative factor in autism. One of the major goals for future research is to undertake more extensive comparative studies of nonautistic brain dysfunctional children and autistic children that could yield clearer differential behavioral profiles and testable neurobiological hypotheses.