Earliest Signs of Autism

By the 1970's a sufficient number of families had made home movies of their children so that there existed a small number of family-made home movies of the infancies of children who were later diagnosed with autism.

Our project collected a series of these movies and analyzed them for 1) Children's first signs of atypical behavior in the first six months of life and 2) Failure of social relatedness and cognitive growth in the second half of the first year through the third year of life.

Findings point to the presence of a prodromal autistic syndrome prior to established autism. The presence of pre-autistic symptoms indicates the importance of beginning treatment as early as possible in the first three years of life. To this end, the presentation also discusses components of treatment approaches that have normalized the children so that they no longer meet criteria for autistic spectrum disorders.

Purchase the complete Autism Seminar Collection

or additional copies of the following:

How Infants and Their Brains Develop and Early Signs of Autism Spectrum Disorders: Implications for Detection and Care
Presented by Colwyn Trevarthen Ph.D. Scotland

Early Identification for ASD Using Social-Emotional Indicators
Presented by Jim Stieben Canada

Early Signs Related to Posture and Communication
Presented by Prof. Laurent Danon-Boileau France

How Children and Parents Collaborate to Negotiate Meaning: Implications for the Language Development of Children with Autism
Presented by Michael Siller M.A. USA

Changing Destinies: Finding the Conditions for Attunement in a Six-Month-Old Baby
Presented by Stella Acquarone Ph.D. England

Early Indicators of Autism Spectrum Disorders in the First Year of Life
Presented by Sandra Maestro M.D. and Filippo Muratori M.D. Italy

Infants at Risk: Early Signs of Pre-Autism Diagnosis and Treatment
Presented by Hanna Alonim Isreal

Echoes in the Nursery: Does Our Third Baby Have Autism Too?
Presented by Barbara Kalmanson Ph.D. USA

The Earliest Signs of Autism in Infants and Treatment: Where We Were and Where We Are
Presented by Henry Massie M.D. USA

Infant Development and Behavior in Autism
Presented by Lonnie Zwaigenbaum M.D. and Shelley Mitchell MSC SLP

Available As: DVD format
Presenter: Henry Massie M.D.
Running Time: 60 Minutes