Different types of autism?

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Do you think there are different types of autism...?

Type A- Autism is probably genetically based, with environmental components, along with possible others. Usually noticable autism traits right from birth or as an infant.

Type B- Autism is probably caused by Autoimmune Disorder that cause autism like symptoms, with genetic components, along with possible others like; vaccination triggers or allergies. Usually born normal, progress normally, then at a certian age regress to show autism symptoms.

If so which one fits your childs/or you, type A or B or a combination of the two?

Well, I'm #1, so I know that Autism can be present from birth. Asperger's can be evident from birth too.

CDD, and other disorders that are similar to Autism with an age of onset that's greater than Autism/Asperger's (dementia and psychotic disorders show symptoms of Autism, as well as the delusions and hallucinations), are probably due to some disease/degenerative process (whatever the cause; autoimmune, viral/bacterial, toxins, etcetera).

Type A. It's definitely genetic in my case.

I voted A, but I don't think there's much difference between A & B. Both mention:
- Genetic components
- Environmental components (including vaccinations or allergy triggers)
- Other components

The real difference between A & B seems to be the time in which others noticed your symptoms. No one thought I was AS until I was in my 30s - which would seem to indicate B. But some of the stories I hear about myself as a kid (as young as 2-3) point to AS - just noone knew it.

I don't really buy that something "has to have happened at that time" in order for someone to (truly or seemingly) lose certain abilities early in life.

Case in point: Look at Rett's syndrome. A person with Rett's develops seemingly normally or even quickly, and then loses speech and purposeful control of their hands at a certain age. They have determined genes for it. There is no environmental trigger there, it's always about the same age and it's genetically determined to be at that age. It coincides with loss of head growth at that age too and neurological changes associated with that.

Also, look at the age that loss of language happens in autistic people with Down's syndrome as opposed to other autistic people.

It turns out that the age has more to do with how much language a person has at the time than any event that happens at that time. A person with Down's syndrome with that sort of autism can appear to develop normally up to a much later age than most autistic people will. This is because they gain that much language later, and then something about it sort of stalls once they reach a certain point. People who gain language earlier than normal probably lose it earlier than normal too.

am would be under the type a section,as it was obvious and mis diagnosed around two years old,and genetically sister,dad,uncle and teenage cousin from dads side all have some form of it,and mum suspects it in her family to.

am think as long as they meet the asd criteria,then its all autism in one way or another.

My guess is everyone that has it, has had it from the genes.
However the thing that puzzled me is that i had all adhd symptoms til about 9.
Very social and could never keep quiet.
Than from 9 onwards my current AS personality started to develop.
My social skills stopped developing and i just totally changed.

Some of my traits have been around since birth, some didn't manifest (or at least weren't noticed) until much later...some traits came from mom, some came from dad...

I'm some sort of neurological mutt, I guess @_@

I've always been a chatterbox, then and even still now, if I'm around the right people...the only thing that's changed in me is I've realized that my manner of conversation is not normal, and most people have no interest in what I have to say and will tune me out...so I'm much more reluctant to open my mouth.

I'm Type A. What few stories I hear of my infancy and early childhood all point to autism, and I can see shades of all the symptoms in my relatives on both sides of my family.

I'm guessing that I'm a type A.

Firstly I have to say that I am not sure that I have AS. But if so, there seems to be a genetic component - my cousin is diagnosed and she suspects one of her niece and nephew of having it also.

On the other hand, neither of my sisters or my parents show obvious signs of being AS (perhaps the odd trait). My mother (who doesnt think I have AS, but doesnt really know much about it) thinks I am different because of a drug that she took whilst pregnant - unfortunately she cant remember the name of it, but she didnt take it with my sisters. Several of her friends also took it and the resulting children were also a bit different from normal.

Overall, I think that autism is genetic in basis, but that environmental factors are likely to have a strong influence on whether the genetic predisposition is expressed or not. I wouldnt be surprised if there are in fact many types of autism (not just an AS/Kanner's division, but many other subgroups), which vary in the groups of genes affected and the environmental components.

There are several significant AS traits that I am lacking, yet there are others in which I am very defective, and yet other traits I have which are not on any clinical AS scale, but are not normal. Sometimes I wonder whether I have a different varient of autism which is not yet described (or perhaps something else entirely different).

Also, the genetic component in my family seems to affect females more than males, which is the opposite of usual autism cases. As a scientist I would like to do some sort of study to find out the genetic basis and environmental influences of autism, but unfortunately I specialised in the wrong area of biology.

ASD recogniseable since birth. Had strong sensory issues and was a mute baby.

Makes me type A? Not sure if ASD runs in my family though!

Last edited by Sora on 24 May 2008, 8:07 am, edited 1 time in total.

I am most likely Type A. I am also a Type A as that phrase is commonly understood-hard driving, dedicated and very successful in specific areas.

I believe I am the odd one out in my family. I think I was probably wired very differently at birth, but my symptoms didn't manifest themselves strongly until I was about four and started kindergarten. I was intelligent, but started school speaking a different language than my classmates. (Oddly enough, in high school, I won an award for excellence in English-my second language.)

I think you're right about there being two types.
As for me, I'm a type A, I've been AS all my life, and also it runs in my family.

Never had any type of regression; I was just slow. And always a bit off. Type A, it's genetic. Autism and autistic traits run through my entire family, on both sides.