Melissa is a Clinical Nurse, Senior Registered Nurse and educator. She is a married mother of six her son (20) has Autism and her youngest daughter (16) Asperger's Syndrome (AS). Melissa has a very mild, but high functioning level of Asperger's. She is the author and self-publisher of three books, the most recent being 'The Melissa Book' available from the website above.

ARTICLE ON AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER

In the last decade the numbers of people diagnosed with autism have increased. Though more than a half-century has passed since Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger first gave names to what we now know as "Autism Spectrum Disorder" (ASD) There is still no known cause, no treatment and no cure.

Parents with a genetic predisposition to autism run a one-in-20 chance of having more than one child with the disorder. Nine out of ten identical twins share the disorder. After two children, the odds fall to one-in-three, so parents of two autistic children may refuse to have more. Geneticists call this 'stoppage.' It is unclear whether there is a global rise in the incidence of autism because of improvements in diagnostic methods or increased public awareness of ASD. Director of California's Stanford PDD Clinic, Linda Lotspeich said that "the rules in the DSM-IV don't work."

The diagnostic criteria are too subjective, like "marked impairment in use of nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body posture, and gestures to regulate social interaction," Ms Lotspeich said.

"How much 'eye-to-eye gaze' do you have to have to be normal? How do you define what 'marked' is? In shades of gray, when does black become white?"

Some children receive a diagnosis of 'Classic Autism' and another diagnosis of 'Asperger's Syndrome' (AS) from two different 'experts,' leaving parents confused.

"My own position is different and includes the possibility that in some individuals it might be appropriate to diagnose autism at one point in time and AS at another ... This diagnosis has to be rooted in empirically derived knowledge, but should not be used for splitting academic hairs," said Chris Gillberg, 1998. Dr. Tony Attwood suggests parents "Use the diagnosis that provides the services." It has become common for parents to diagnose themselves as having Asperger's syndrome, or to identify other family members as being on the spectrum, only after their own children have been diagnosed.

A common joke in the information technology industry is that many programmers are probably on the spectrum and likely to be AS. Some call Asperger's Syndrome the "engineers' disorder." My partner Chris has an engineering degree and identifies AS traits in himself. He supports this notion and often wondered why he was so "different" to other people.

Many of California's Silicon Valley employees are described as odd and some suggest "ASD would be at home here." Bill Gates behaviour of rocking motions, flat tone of voice and single-minded focus on technical details is regularly analyzed by the media. His large financial contributions to ASD charities is assumed to be a personal identification with the disorder.

"A WYSIWYG world, where respect and rewards are based strictly on merit, is an Asperger's dream," said Steve Silverman writer for Silicon Valley's Geek Magazine WIRED. "Computers are an ideal interest for a person with Asperger's syndrome ... they are logical, consistent, and not prone to moods," Silverman said. Maxine Aston, author of "The Other Half of Asperger Syndrome, about living in an intimate relationship with a partner with Asperger's Syndrome; says that people have fixed ideas about adults with Asperger's Syndrome as loners, solitary and eccentric characters who avoid intimate relationship or desperately seek partnership without success.

"This can be a description of some individuals with Asperger's Syndrome but there are others who have a partner and successful career whilst camouflaging their disorder from their colleagues and friends. However, their partner and family can become aware of their abilities, which is consistent with a diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome," Ms Aston said. Temple Grandin said that two people who are autistic-like are attracted because their intellects work on a similar wavelength.

"People with Asperger's Syndrome have a different way of thinking and some are remarkably creative and perceptive. The characteristics can lead to an illustrious career in science and the arts," said Tony Attwood, 2000. "Examples of possible "Asperger's Achievers" are Albert Einstein, Thomas Jefferson, Mozart, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Glenn Gould and Alan Turing ... such illustrious individuals could be valuable heroes to children with Asperger's Syndrome," Attwood said."It seems that for success in science and art," Hans Asperger wrote, "a dash of autism is essential."

Tony Attwood asks "Is there an epidemic of people being diagnosed as having Asperger's Syndrome? At present we cannot answer the question, as we are unsure of the diagnostic criteria, the upper and lower levels of expression and the borders with other conditions. Nevertheless, we are experiencing a huge increase in diagnosis but this may be the backlog of cases that have been waiting so long for an explanation. At long last, we know why such individuals are different and finally we can learn how to understand each other."

Melissa BEE (C) 20th June 2002.