Does Your Baby Have Autism?: Detecting the Earliest Signs of Autism [Paperback]

Philip Teitelbaum (Author), Osnat Teitelbaum (Author), Joanne Abrams (Editor), Cathy Morrison (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 2008

For many years, the diagnosis of autism has centered on a child s social interaction--from poor eye contact to lack of language skills. Although the autism community agrees that early intervention is key to effective treatment, the telltale signs of this disorder usually don t reveal themselves until the age of two or three. But what if it were possible to detect the potential for autism within the first year of life? That is the basis of Osnat and Philip Teitelbaum s book, Does Your Baby Have Autism?

Does Your Baby Have Autism? first provides general information about the history of autism, followed by a discussion of The Ladder of Motor Development. Each of four chapters then examines one motor milestone--righting, sitting, crawling, or walking--contrasting typical development with atypical development so that it s easy to recognize unusual patterns of movement. Also included is a unique thirty-second Tilt Test--easy to perform at home--which helps reveal a balance problem characteristic of children with autism. Finally, parents are guided in finding professional help for a child whose motor skills may indicate a problem.
There is a way to detect signs of autism early in a child s life, when therapy can do the most good. Does Your Baby Have Autism? holds the key to a brighter future for children and their families.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Husband-and-wife researchers present for the lay reader intriguing results from two decades of close observation and early detection of autism and Asperger's syndrome in babies. Instead of relying on language deficits and socialization to identify these developmental disorders, which has been the traditional approach by doctors, delaying detection and thus treatment to two years and older, this team reasoned from watching videos concerned parents made of their infants that atypical movement patterns signaling autism were apparent within the first year. While a typical baby achieves milestones of righting himself, crawling, sitting and walking through specific movements, the autistic child's ladder of motor development progresses differently, for example, in asymmetrical positions, lagging reflexes or impaired sense of balance. Each chapter defines what is typical and what is problematic, what parents can do to stimulate growth and how to seek help. The authors emphasize the importance of keeping records and offer a Observation Journal for the infant's caregiver, as well as numerous pages of resources. Nonsexist, reasoned if somewhat urgent in tone, this work, which is sure to be controversial, aims to turn the caregiver's intuition into positive, early action. (May)
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Review

"Will prove invaluable to parents, while the numerous drawings and pictures illustrate what signs parents and professionals should be looking for when assessing their child's development...Recommended.' (Library Journal )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Square One Publishers (March 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0757002404
• ISBN-13: 978-0757002403
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #915,639 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Motor development and early autism, June 13, 2008

By 

Melody Marshall - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Does Your Baby Have Autism?: Detecting the Earliest Signs of Autism (Paperback)

This book is a "must read" for health care professionals, other persons who work with infants and parents of infants, and parents who are concerned about their baby's motor development. The authors offer motor development clues gleaned from videotapes of children diagnosed with autism to help parents and others identify possible early autism in infants. Delightfully drawn graphic illustrations enhance the easily understood narrative. The authors identify numerous autism information and therapy resources.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A new system for detecting the earliest signs of autism - in a baby, June 6, 2008

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Does Your Baby Have Autism?: Detecting the Earliest Signs of Autism (Paperback)

This new system for detecting the earliest signs of autism - in a baby - offers a brand new theory and comes from a husband/wife team who have worked for nearly two decades to develop ways of detecting signs of potential autism in a child. By expanding patterns of sitting, crawling and walking and comparing them with those of children later definitively diagnosed, they present both general information about autism's causes and progression and a survey of tests the parents can easily conduct to help define and identify early autism onset with respect to their children.

5.0 out of 5 stars Good info about motor development in first year, November 21, 2009

By 

C. Smiley (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Does Your Baby Have Autism?: Detecting the Earliest Signs of Autism (Paperback)

The best thing about this book is that it gives detailed yet clear descriptions of the normal motor development in a child's first year. It explains the typical ways that children start to roll over, sit up, and walk. It also gives examples of atypical ways children develop, which the authors believe may be an early sign of autism or asperger's. I also liked that the book gave some suggestions about how to help your child develop different motor skills.