3 year old autism , PDD Or just shy?

[Rodica]

My 3 yr old boy was recently evaluated by specialists (developmental pediatrician& psychologist)  and they said he did not score for autism. His IQ was normal . Academically he is above average (counting. letters,shapes,etc) . However he does not seem to understand a story from a book .He does not ask questions about what he sees in the book and if I ask him a question , he always says "I don't know ". He never tells me what did he do at school .His eye contact is ok , but he doesn't  talks to strangers . In preschool , he never says more than one word and when he is prompted to say it he only whispers . He was found 1 yr delayed in expressive language , but at home he talks in 4-6 words sentence. He sometimes ask some questions but not as much as he should for his age. He does not flap hands . HE does lines up cars but not too often. He is not upset if we change his schedule . He had many ear infections in the past and still has a little fluid but his hearing test was ok.Is this autism or auditory processing or social anxiety ( all these dg are made by me from searching the net ) ? How can I HElp him?

[Myrna Libby, Ph.D., BCBA]

Did explain all of your concerns when he was evaluated?  It is impossible for anyone to make a diagnosis over the internet and it is nice that autism was ruled out but you have other significant concerns and I would suggest you puruse with your pediatrician and any counseling services that your school system or town provide.  I would also contact someone with experience as a BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) and who has worked with young children with social/anxiety issues.  Until your concerns are alleviated I would continue to pursue professional help for your son's social skills.

[Rodica]

Also he plays well with siblings but never with children he doesn't know . He does interact a little bit with his classmates but only if prompted by teacher.

[Sally44]

I agree and think you should continue to seek professional help and raise your concerns with professionals (write it down beforehand if you have a number of things to remember).  It is quite possible for a child to have 'traits' of a condition/s but not enough to get a diagnosis.  Sometimes you do have to play the waiting game to see how your child develops.  It is difficult to do this, but if your child has difficulties in certain areas it will become more evident because those defecits will have a knock on effect with higher functions for eg. a child at 3 may have a speech delay, play alongside peers, appear shy.  By age 4/5 speech may be showing more classical difficulties eg. problems with receptive language, still plays alongside peers/doesn't initiate social interaction.  By age 6, when child is expected to become more independent at school it may become apparent that they have problems with planning/sequencing/predicting outcomes/no understanding of time etc.  From a developmental point of view there are times when children acquire certain skills and, as they are not expected to have those skills prior to that age you can only wait and see how they develop.  It may be that overtime your child is progressively moving away from a diagnosis of autism, or it may be that over time things become apparent that enable professionals to give him a diagnosis.  But the most important thing is to get advice and support for difficulties he has now, and to continue to raise any concerns you have.