Folks who suffer from Asperger syndrome exhibit impaired social behavior, motor milestones, limited patterns of repetitiveness and even clumsiness. It is also known as Asperger’s Syndrome or AS and is one of numerous disorders associated with autism.
AS patients tend to have many of the same symptoms as those folks who have high functioning autism. This occasionally makes a diagnosis tricky since the two disorders are so alike. Nevertheless, Asperger Syndrome is different from any other type of autistic disorder in that there is no delay in their cognitive development or language skills.
An Austrian pediatrician by the name of Hans Asperger, was the first to identify the disorder back in 1944, when he described his patients as failing to exhibit empathy, in addition to lacking nonverbal communication skills. However, it took some fifty years when in 1994, this syndrome was ultimately recognized and classified as a genuine disorder.
These days, there are still a lot of questions about the autistic disorder-like impairment. There has long been uncertainty in relation to the differences in high functioning autistic folks and those that have Asperger Syndrome.
Can Asperger Syndrome Be Treated
Depending on the age of the person, treatments for Asperger Syndrome try to manage the symptoms of the disorder, for both communication and vocational skills. The interventions that are used for treatment are generally adapted to suit the specific needs of the person.
There have been many progressions made in the last few years together with adaptations to the process of treating this disorder. However, there is not any complete data to support particular intervening methods.
Because AS is in the autism spectrum, some of the same procedures and techniques can be used with patients that have high functioning autism.
Asperger experts still do not fully understand the syndrome and even with all of he studies that have been carried out into this disorder, there is still little known about it to offer a complete understanding. AS experts and physicians who treat this disorder know that, the symptoms are very similar to those of the high functioning autistic disorder.
Asperger Syndrome Prognosis
At this point in time, there is no known cure for the disorder and although new things are being discovered all the time, there is still much to be learnt.
Physicians have been able to make great strides in helping those affected with Asperger’s increase their ability to be social and to stop certain repetitive behaviors.
Hopefully, in the near future there will be enough information to totally eliminate this disorder and help those who are suffering Asperger Syndrome, to live far more productive lives.