Onset patterns in autism: correspondence between home video and parent report.

Objective: The onset of autism is usually conceptualized as occurring in one of two patterns, early onset or regressive. This study examined the number and shape of trajectories of symptom onset evident in coded home movies of children with autism and examined their correspondence with parent report of onset.

Method: Four social-communicative behaviors were coded from the home video of children with autism (n = 52) or typical development (n = 23).

Atypical object exploration at 12 months of age is associated with autism in a prospective sample.

This prospective study examined object exploration behavior in 66 12-month-old infants, of whom nine were subsequently diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. Previous investigations differ on when the repetitive behaviors characteristic of autism are first present in early development. A task was developed that afforded specific opportunities for a range of repetitive uses of objects and was coded blind to outcome status.

A case study of childhood disintegrative disorder using systematic analysis of family home movies.

Childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD) is a rare pervasive developmental disorder that involves regression after a period of at least 2 years of typical development. This case study presents data from family home movies, coded by reliable raters using an objective coding system, to examine the trajectory of development in one child with a reported regression at 48 months of age. Coding substantiated parent reports of mostly typical early development, followed by later catastrophic loss of skills across many developmental domains.

Gross motor development, movement abnormalities, and early identification of autism.

Gross motor development (supine, prone, rolling, sitting, crawling, walking) and movement abnormalities were examined in the home videos of infants later diagnosed with autism (regression and no regression subgroups), developmental delays (DD), or typical development. Group differences in maturity were found for walking, prone, and supine, with the DD and Autism-No Regression groups both showing later developing motor maturity than typical children. The only statistically significant differences in movement abnormalities were in the DD group; the two autism groups did not differ from the typical group in rates of movement abnormalities or lack of protective responses.