2 year old son with poor eye contact

hello my son is 2 years old and 5 months he has poor eye contact. somtimes he looks as me but sometimes he doesnt especially if i call his name. but if i raise my voice and call him he will look at me and come, thinking i am mad at him and he would want a hug or kiss. iam affraid he has autisim. he has no routine problem he eats healthy and loves different kinds of food. he fingure touches . sometimes points but he has 3 or 4 words only. his senory is good i check his hearing did some blood tests and counts and they were normal. he doesnt like much of dairy producta like milk or cheese. he plays mostly on his own and sometimes with other kids. he is good at preschool . likes to do things himself like hold his cup or spoon or flush the  toilet when he is done. but my main concern is he is delayed in speach and has poor eye contact. what should i do? he is interested when poeple come over and smiles and loves to be cuddles and kissed. and likes to be around me all the time. he doesnt get tentrums but when he wants something and i dont do it he wines and pulls me till i do it. can u tell me what i should do? or research about.
thank you

[William L. Holcomb, Ph.D., BCBA-D]

Some of the things you describe could be features of a child on the autism spectrum, but they might also be representative of a child with a possible communication problem.  I encourage you to take your son to your pediatrician and discuss your concerns with him or her.  If your child’s doctor believes further assessment in necessary, then I recommend that you find an assessment team familiar with young children and autism spectrum disorders (ASD).  A speech and language pathologist should be a member of the team given your description of the communication problems.  (I am not a speech and language pathologist, but 3 or 4 word phrases for a 2-1/2-year-old doesn’t sound all that atypical to me.  The eye contact and lack of responsiveness to name should be of concern.)  

In the meantime you may wish to take a look at the websites below.  They have information about early identification of children with ASD

About.com Pediatrics
http://pediatrics.about.com/od/weeklyquestion/a/04_signs_autism.htm
American Academy of Pediatrics
http://www.aap.org/healthtopics/Autism.cfm
First Signs
http://www.firstsigns.org/

[Shesmysarah]

A related discussion, It has been suggested that my daughter has ADHD.   was started.