Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges.

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Common Signs of Autism ...

• Avoiding eye contact

• Delayed speech and communication skills

• Reliance on rules and routines

• Being upset by relatively minor changes

• Unexpected reactions to sounds, tastes, sights, touch and smells

• Difficulty understanding other people’s emotions

• Focusing on or becoming obsessed by a narrow range of interests or objects

• Engaging in repetitive behavior such as flapping hands or rocking

• Children not responding to their name by 12 months

• Children not pointing at distant objects by 14 months

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Did you know ...

• Autism now affects 1 in 59 children and 1 in 37 boys

• Autism prevalence figures are growing

• Autism is one of the fastest-growing developmental disorders in the U.S.

• Autism costs a family $60,000 a year on average

• Boys are nearly five times more likely than girls to have autism

• There is no medical detection or cure for autism

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Black and Hispanic children continued to be less likely to be identified with ASD than white children. These differences suggest that black and Hispanic children may face socioeconomic or other barriers that lead to a lack of or delayed access to evaluation, diagnosis, and services..

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