Autism signs?

[dorinda007]

I have a little boy who is 14 months old.  Occasionally, he flaps his arms and at other times he shakes his head (as if nodding 'no').  Does this mean he could have autism and should I be concerned about this??  Do babies without autism also do those things sometimes?  

He seems pretty normal otherwise.  He smiles, laughs, crawls, and is starting to walk by himself a little bit.  However, he still only really says 'mama' and 'dada' though and doesn't point or wave yet.  He is a little below the 50th percentile for height, but his weight hasn't gone up at all since his yearly checkup in July of this year.  He still weighs 20 lbs, but he doesn't look too thin, and he eats pretty good.  

The flapping of the arms and shaking of the head though caught my attention.  I wasn't sure if this could be normal in children of his age or if I should be concerned.  I also heard that sometimes children can regress suddenly and then be diagnosed with autism.  This regression has also been related to the MMR vaccine which worries me even more because he is going to be getting this vaccine in mid October 2007, next month.

I hope you can give me some more information and some answers about what I have discussed.  Thanks.  

[luv4baby]

I have an 11th month old who I am concerned he may be on the spectrum. He, like the person above mentioned will not respond to me calling his name (unless I change the inflection of my voice). He rarely makes eye contact unless he wants to. he does smile and laugh but he has always been a "high maintenance" baby since birth who cries and whines all the time. He does a bit of flapping but what concerns me more is his issues with reflux ((he still is on meds for it), and when he was 6 months old he was seen by a specialist for a possible hearing problem (which they said he was fine) but now after  researching, I am concerned.

[made04]

my son is three and has a speech delay understands what i say, but never spoke only says mama dada no. he knows sign laugue, he doesnt really play with kids his age  but he does play with his brother and sisters. Are these signs of a mild autistic child ?

[lylli]

I posted on your other thread.  I mean no disrespect but these are indeed signs that can be attributed to autism spectrum disorders.  The key word there is can.  These behaviors do not mean that your child is autistic for sure, just that he has some similar behaviors.  It is important to have a much  more complete picture of your child's behaviors though.  I would not freak out too much but I would recommend an evaluation by a developmental pediatrician.  

[musical grammy]

Karen DeFelice has written some awesome books about her experiences with her two children!!  Check it out at the library or get your own if you're concerned about autism.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

There is no reason to be concerned about the behaviors you are witnessing in your son. The behaviors are very normal for his age. Re: the possible association between autism and vaccines, a concern has been raised that the preservative thimerosol, which contains mercury, used in some vaccines, might be responsible. This has not been demonstrated for certain. However, to be on the safe side, be sure that the vaccine your doctor uses is thimerosol-free. Pretty much you can be certain of this if the vaccine is produced in the United States, but ask your doctor just to be certain. Following is a CDC web site that you might find useful:

http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/iso/concerns/thimerosal.htm