Doctors say they may soon be able to diagnose autism at a much earlier age. A study on 104 children, published in the journal Current Biology, has identified differences in the brainwaves of babies that are as young as six months. However, the test is not yet accurate enough to be used routinely.
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It is thought that one in every hundred children is born with autism. The first signs are behavioural problems between the first and second birthdays, but scientists think they may be able to spot the disorder even sooner.
Older children with autism can show a lack of eye contact. So researchers showed six-to-ten month-old babies images of faces looking either towards or away from the baby while brain activity was being recorded.
In those that did not go on to develop autism there was a large difference in the brainwaves when looking at each image. However, infants who did develop autism showed little difference in brain activity.
Doctors say they hope that if they can diagnose the condition earlier, they'll be able to begin specialist education and training programmes sooner and alleviate some of the symptoms.
Reporter
James Gallagher
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autism
otizm; içeyöneliklik, sosyal etkileşime ve iletişime zarar veren rahatsızlık
behavioural problems
davranışsal sorunlar
to spot
belirlemek, farkına varmak
disorder
bozukluk, beklendiği şekilde faliyet göstermeme durumu; hastalık
eye contact
göz teması, doğrudan bir başkasının gözlerine bakma
brainwaves
beyindeki elektrik sinyaller
diagnose
teşhis etmek
condition
sağlık durumu, hal; hastalık
alleviate
hafifletmek
symptoms
semptomlar, belirtiler; sağlıksızlığa işaret eden unsurlar
