Autopsy

Autistic Savant

Auditory Processing Problems

Cognitive Processing

　

Limbic System

Hippocampus

Amygdala

　

Cerebellum

Hy p op lasia

Purkinje Cell

　

Stereotypy

　

Intestinal Flora

Anti-depressant

　

Echolalia

　

Proprioceptor

Vestibular System

Tactile receptor

　

Autism is an extremely complex disorder in which social and emotional development is retarded, and sensory information is not processed normally, resulting in sensory impairment or sensory "overselectivity".

　

Autistic individuals have a physical abnormality of the hippocampus and amygdala. Two lobules of the cerebellum are significantly smaller than normal (hypoplasia) and there is a deficiency of Purkinje cells in the cerebellum.

　

Abnormal levels of serotonin, defects in the intestinal tract that include yeast overgrowths (in addition to structural causes) are a few other abnormalities that are contributing factors in Autism.

　

Autism ranges in severity from extremely mild to severe. There is sometimes no damage to intellectual functions of learning and memory that are located mainly in the hippocampus.

　

Some typical symptoms include - the inability to use language in a normal manner, stereotypy, hypersensitivity to sounds, touch, concentrating exclusively on a narrow field of vision, inability to recognize the perspective of others.

　

　

One of the main causes of Autism is damage of the hippocampus - where not only sensory information but also learning and memory are processed before being transferred to the cerebral cortex. This damage results, in laboratory testing of animals where the hippocampus is damaged or removed, in social withdrawal, compulsive behaviors (stereotypy), and failure to learn about dangerous situations (fear-related stimuli are not properly processed.). Furthermore, the hearing and speech impairments in Autism, (mutism, echolalia, and speech fragments) also result-from the damage to the sensory processing functions of the hippocampus. Also it results in sensory overselectivity and difficulty in shifting attention. Damage of the amygdala also contributes to the retardation of emotional growth seen so often in Autistic individuals.

　

Another structural cause of Autism is found in the cerebellum where the number of Purkinje cells is drastically reduced.

　

Yet another possible factor is an overactive opiate system that produces abnormally high levels of endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin. These opiates decrease the motivation to socialize, and senses of pain and fear. Self-stimulatory behaviors are also seen to be an attempt to stimulate prioreceptors, and the vestibular system that is not functioning normally, perhaps due to the above causes.

　

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