How to Treat and Diagnose Asperger's Syndrome

Asperger's Syndrome or Asperger's Disorder was named after Hans Asperger, who wrote a study in 1944 describing autistic-like behaviors in several young boys who had otherwise average intelligence and language skills. Hans Asperger discussed the boys' difficulties with communication with peers and other social interactions as well as seeming to be physically uncomfortable in their bodies. Although Asperger wrote his paper in 1944, it wasn't until 50 years later that the disorder was recognized in the United States by doctors. Today, Asperger's Syndrome is still difficult to diagnose, but by following the steps below and seeing a doctor, it can be possible to determine whether you or someone you love suffers with Asperger's Syndrome.

Things You'll Need

• Doctor

Show More

Instructions

• 1

  Observe your patient's behavior. Someone who has Asperger's Syndrome generally shows interest in repetitive or focused activities. They may remain occupied for long periods of time with small objects or parts of an object. The person may be interested only in a very specialized detail of something, such as determining and understanding the inner workings of a computer without knowing how to actually use the computer. These behaviors will usually be deveoped by the time the children reaches kindergarden.

• 2

  Observe your patient's speech patterns. Many individuals with Asperger's Syndrome exhibit little to no problems speaking, however, in some instances, strange vocal habits emerge in some individuals, such as unexplained loudness, pitch change, speech rhythm or nonsensical intonation variations. People with Asperger's Syndrome may exhibit speech patterns that sounds particularly fast, loud, jerky or overly formal, as if they lack a specific finesse when they speak. Children with Asperger's Syndrome, however, may have an unusually large vocabulary.

• 3

  Observe the patient's attention to detail. Individuals with Asperger's Syndrome may have fantastic visual and auditory perception and may be able to notice very minute changes in their surroundings that another individual may not. People with Asperger's Syndrome are also often sensitive to loud sounds, bright lights, pain, temperature, and touch. They may experience Synesthesia, or a strong association between colors and objects or colors and letters/numbers that are not associated to most people.

• 4

  Examine the possible causes, if any. In Hans Asperger's study, he expressed common behaviors amongst fathers of children he studied. No specific genes have yet been identified, but Asperger's Syndrome is believed to be partially or wholly genetic. Another known cause of Asperger's Syndrome is an early exposure to teratogens (or objects/chemicals that may cause birth defects in children), in the first few weeks after conception occurs.

• 5

  Bring your patient to the doctor for diagnosis. Diagnoses are generally made before the age of eleven and includes a genetic and neurological assessment as well as verbal, cognitive and motor-function tests to determine learning style. As you can probably imagine, it may take a long time to get a definite diagnosis.

• 6

  Go to an Asperger's Disorder or Autism Specialist if your patient is exhibiting any of these symptoms. Many children who have Asperger's Syndrome are misdiagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder, Depression, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, nonverbal learning disorder, bipolar disorder and Tourette Syndrome.