Understanding Girls With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism spectrum disorders are a class of developmental disorders that impair social skills, behavior, and communication (Center for Disease Control). ASDs are considered ‘spectrum’ disorders because each patient has a unique experience in the nature and severity of their symptoms (Center for Disease Control). Under the umbrella of ASDs, there are three types of disorders, including Autistic disorder, Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (Center for Disease Control). Autistic disorder is the most severe of the three, and patients exhibit significant problems with language, communication, and behavior (Center for Disease Control). Furthermore, people with Autistic disorder often have some intellectual impairment (Center for Disease Control). Asperger Syndrome is a milder form of autistic disorder where patients have some developmental delays, but their language and intellect are not affected (Center for Disease Control). The mildest of the ASDs is the pervasive developmental disorder. These patients usually don’t meet all of the criteria for autistic disorder, but do show some signs of social and communication problems (Center for Disease Control). The number of children diagnosed with ASD is growing, and currently 1 in 88 children fall somewhere on the spectrum (Mari-Bauset et al., 2013). Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism, and while the exact cause of these disorders is unknown, both genetic and

Founding editor of Spectrum, Apoorva Mandavilli recounts information she has found throughout many studies particularly pertaining to autism in females. She is an accomplished writer with her work appearing in many famous magazines and news articles such as, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Slate, Nature, and many others. Throughout her story “The Lost girls” Mandavilli explains the differences in how women and men react to the same thing as well as the treatments they undergo. She writes a very informative but powerful story by using perspectives of a few separate instances of autism. She then goes on to explain the differences in boys and girls social interactions.

Autism is one of the most common disorders among children in the United States. Autism affects 1 in 68 children (Center for Disease Control, 2014). By comparison, this is more children than are affected by diabetes, AIDS, cancer, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy or Down syndrome – combined (Autism Speaks, 2012). Boys are four times more likely to have autism than girls. This disorder typically appears during the first three years of life.

Females with ASD are significantly more vulnerable than their male counterparts to “delayed or missed diagnosis”, leaving them untreated and at significant risk for adverse psychosocial and medical outcomes (Lai, 2015). Second, understanding the etiology of the gender discrepancies in presentation of ASD will deepen our understanding of the disease from a nosological perspective and possibly lead to new and novel hypotheses about the conceptualization and treatment avenues of ASD. Specific Aims: To examine existing literature for genotypic and phenotypic differences between males and females diagnosed with ASD. While prior meta-analyses have examined the differences between males and females with ASD in the “core triad of impairments”, none have examined genetic variations as well as symptomatology (Van Wjingaarden-Cremers et al. 2014). As our nosological framework is limited in our understanding of gender’s effect on autism, examining both phenotypic and genotypic data such as neuroimaging (brain MRIs), and genetic analyses, could further our understanding. On examination of brain MRI, genetic mutation burden, and symptomatic impairments validated using various outcome measures such as the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence - Second Edition, Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition and the Child Behavior Checklist, females with

In a recent study done in August of 2013, scientists found that autism had a peculiar affect on the female brain. Researchers were looking to find differences between the two genders, something to support the already explored EMR theory, (also known as the “Extreme Male Brain Theory”), but they did not expect the possibility of the female autistic brain having a masculine resemblance. Scientists studied several men and women, with and without autism, which led to the discovery of the differences between the two genders.

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“Why Autism is Different in the Brains of Girls than in Boys” written by Alexandra Stifferlin was published by Time Magazine on May 12, 2015. In this article, Stifferlin discusses that both biological and social reasons might be why girls are less diagnosed with autism than boys.

In the book TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee, the mockingbird is a symbol of fairness and respect for people who do things for you. It symbolizes that people can be righteous even if they have different political and moral views from you. Just like “shootin’ a mockingbird” is a sin because it sings its heart out (pg. #), similarly it is a sin to do something bad to someone who does good. general town

In the United States, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that between 1 in 80 and 1 in 240, for an average of 1 in 110 children have an autism spectrum disorder, “ASD” (Nirv, Shah 2011). According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, up to six out of every 1,000 children may be diagnosed with some form of autism. In addition, boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism. This means that as many as 1.5 million Americans today are believed to have some form of autism. Unfortunately, the numbers appear to be increasing rapidly. Autism is a disability that frequently appears during the first three years of life. It is the result of a neurological disorder that affects the

The overall statistics, according to the data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, shows that 1 in 68 children in the U.S has autism, 1 in 42 boys have autism while 1 in 189 girls has autism. Autism is so rare in females that, according to an article from the New York Times, they are considered to be “research orphans” because it so difficult to find enough females with the disorder to do a proper research on (Bazelon). Despite the lack of autistic female subject, there has been a lot of differences in the typical behavior of males and females with autism. According to Bazelon, young females tends to do better in behavior than males because they are less likely to set off tantrums and are easier to handle. However, as teenagers, girls tends to suffer from severe depression and anxiety because they are unable to maintain friendship with other females while some autistic males do maintain some friendships with other peers despite their awkwardness. Basically, most teenage females engage in a lot of social networks thus making bonds with typical females a challenge as autistic females do not share the same interests. Males do not face the same difficulties because their expectations are not as high as females. The huge difference of autism in gender is so significant that it even the typical gender roles are somewhat

When working at my internship, there were only 10 girls out of 55 students there with ASD. “ASD is four times more common in males than in females” (Chahrour, 2016). It has been hard to show and understand why it is more common in males than females but there have been quite a few studies based upon this (Chahrour, 2016). “Approximately 80% of the children diagnosed are boys” with ASD (Schaafsma, 2016). One theory that has been considered was how “females tend to display more compensatory behavioral changes, which could lead to underdiagnoses” (Chahrour, 2016). There has also been a “three-hit” theory that has been investigated when talking about how males are more predominating to have ASD (Schaafsma, 2016). This three-hit factor includes genetics, environmental factors, and sex (Schaafsma, 2016). This has been considered to help explain why there is the male predominance and why there are not as many females diagnosed with ASD (Schaafsma,

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by the early-onset inability to engage in social interaction, communication, and restricted, repetitive behavior. It is commonly known to be a developmental disorder. Genetics, in conjunction with developmentally early environmental factors, play a key role in the causation of autism. Studies show that autism is more prevalent in males than females, although there is not much difference in individuals with intellectual disability. Because atypical development is now being recognized early in toddlers, children are now frequently diagnosed at the age of 2 years and last into adulthood, although symptoms may improve over time. A wide range of health care providers are the first professionals to

Autism has had a 10-fold increase in prevalence in the last 40 years in the United States. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have identified that 1 in 68 American children are classified as autistic, which affects over 3 million individuals in the United States (“What Is Autism,” n.d.). Current estimates are that 1 out of 42 boys and 1 out of 189 girls are diagnosed with autism in this country(“What Is Autism,” n.d.). Autism affects all races, ethnicities, and social groups.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a life-long developmental disorder with a neuro-biological basis that can cause significant social, communication, and behavioral challenges. A diagnosis of ASD now includes several conditions that formerly were diagnosed separately: autistic disorder, pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified, and Asperger syndrome. ASD varies significantly in character and severity, it occurs in all ethnic and socioeconomic groups and affects every age group. Males are four times more likely to have an ASD than females (NINDS, 2014).

Men and women are often stereotyped. Autistic men and women are no different. Autistic Women are all around the world. Your best friend, roommate, or even siblings can be part of the Autistic Spectrum. You probably won’t even realize how much they struggle to be normal because if they are on the higher end of Autistic Spectrum they can hide their struggles very well. Autism is usually spectated as someone who is not intelligent or doesn’t know personal space. Autistic women do exist but know how to hide it; they are stereotyped as unintelligent but our uniquely smart in many aspects.