期刊名称：Journal of Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health
电子版ISSN：0973-1342
出版年度：2006
卷号：2
期号：03
页码：70-71
出版社：Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health
摘要：The Poona Psychiatrist Association Oration of the Indian Association of Child
and Adolescent Mental Health, 2005 delivered by Professor Savita Malhotra drew our
attention to autistic disorders.1 Autism is a serious, lifelong developmental disability
characterized by significant impairments in reciprocal social interactions and
communication skills, as well as a restricted/repetitive pattern of interests and/or
behaviors. During the 1960s, it was generally assumed that autism was a rare seriously
handicapping disorder, usually associated with intellectual disability and constituted a
condition that was qualitatively distinct from variations in social and communicative
competence within the normal range.1-3 Both genetic and epidemiological research
findings have forced a change in concept as a result of the evidence that autistic like
abnormalities are common and often occur in individuals with normal intelligence,
particularly in first degree relatives of individuals with autism.3 The heritability or
underlying genetic liability of autism spectrum disorder is about 90% - the highest figure
among all multi-factorial child psychiatric disorders. Twin data also show that the
genetic liability extends well beyond the traditional core diagnosis of autism to include a
wide spectrum of autistic–like disorders (autism spectrum disorders: ASD).3
