genitics of autism

I have a son that is 8 months old and i was just wondering what the likelyhood of him developing autism is and if there is a way to have a test to see if my parterner and i carry the gene?  we are desperate to find out as we are wondering if we should ever have any more children in the future!
my sons uncel on maturnal side has slight asbergers and his uncel on paturnal side has sever autism. We suspect his great uncel on maturnal side to have slight autism althought never diagnosed.
So in my eyes is not looking good for my boyor for the future of more children! can any one help?

[KarenDiane]

There is no genetic test for autism. Only time will tell if your son is autistic. With 2 uncles on the spectrum, your son's chances for autism are probably slightly higher than someone with no autism in their family but I don't think the odds are anything too monumental. You should just relax and enjoy your son. Autistic or not, he's only little once. If he is autistic, you will see the signs by 18 months or so and you can worry about giving him siblings after that.

[Athena_M]

Alot of children with autism have Fragile X syndrome according to a Genetics doctor we went to.  There is a gentetics test for that.  My son does not have fragile X but does have mild autism.
Does he make eye contact?  Most children with autism won't.  You can work on the eye contact with him and avoid the TV.  Some studies were linking autism to too much children's TV.  My son had a speech delay from watching Baby Einstein so avoid that.  

[BTS1022]

Autism has nothing to do with to much children's t.v. I think Television does however play a role in a child's attention span. A child with Autism would usually not have an attention span that allows them to watch "to much t.v".

I have a 4 year old son who has severe Autism, however his motor skills and talking skills are wonderful and very normal for his age. Autism is a spectrum, there isn't just one severity of it, and different children show different signs of Autism. My son can not sit and watch T.V . like a normal child, his attention span does not allow him to focus on just one thing.

Some other signs besides lack of motor skills include.

Behavior issues
Inappropriate laughing and or screaming
obsessing over a certain object, for example : My son is obsessed with Trains, if he see's an image of a train he will be frantic if he cannot have it, or touch it.
Hypersensitive hearing- My son will not flush a toilet because it is to loud, he also does not like when pasta or food boils over on the stove top as the sizzling is to loud.
OCD like habits- Lining toys up in rows by specific color, type or size.
Sleep disruptions
No eye contact
inappropriate hand and or body gestures.
Hyper activity
Seizures

The list goes on.

You will more than likely have to see a family doctor or pediatrician to get a referral to have your son tested..mind you, most insurances will not cover the testing, and it is highly expensive.

Autism has also been linked to people with a history of Epilepsy and other seizure disorders. A woman with Epilepsy will have a chance to conceive a child with Autism. Other things such as environmental, auto immune, nervous system disorders, and certain genetic disorders such as downs syndrome have all been linked to Autism.

I have slight Epilepsy, and was not diagnosed until I was 23 years old. My son who has Autism also has seizures, they are minor but very noticeable. If I were you I would further my research on Autism before trying to get your child seen by a doctor. If you don't find the right information on Autism the whole process can be very confusing and very difficult for you to understand.

[BTS1022]

Also, there really is not any genetic testing for Autism. It would be hard to test a child who has Autism because of environmental complications. Child immunizations have also been linked to Autism. How do you go about testing a child for it genetically if it was something outside his/her body that caused the disorder?

Children with Autism can live very happy, and healthy lives. And most if caught early can have a reduction in symptoms.

[KarenDiane]

I have to disagree with a couple things that you said on here.

Many autistic children do have the attention span to watch "too much TV". My daughter would watch a video over and over and over again when she was less than 2 years old. She would scream bloody murder every time it ended. And many autistic children will spend hours with whatever their "obsession" happens to be. Often, ADD / ADHD goes hand in hand with autism. That may be the reason for your son's short attention span.

The studies that claimed autism is linked to vaccines have been discredited. It is believed to be a genetic defect in the brain, present at birth. The idea that outside factors cause autism is outdated.

Child psychologists who diagnose autism do refer to it in varying degrees. My daughters exact diagnosis high functioning or mild autism.

[Athena_M]

I worked with children with autism for about 9 years before I had my first child.  I do have to say, that I didn't notice any symptoms of autism until after he had his 2 year old vaccinations.  
My 5 year old has the same diagnosis as your daughter of mild autism.  

[xx_Louise_xx]

Hey there, my son has problems relating to autism. Although not diagnosed ...yet! I have no history of mental problems like this in my family. However, my sons dad's sister is autistic, so therefore i believe it came from that as his dad maybe had the gene. Im guessing so anyway. But to be honest, im sure theres a history of everything in everyones families along the line! So try not too worry too much.. :)