How Aspergers is Diagnosed
"We have a son who we believe may have asperger syndrome and we were wondering how this disorder is diagnosed." An Aspergers diagnosis is often a two-stage process. The first stage involves general developmental screening during the child’s checkups with a doctor or an early childhood health care provider. Kids who show some developmental problems are referred for additional evaluation. The second stage involves a thorough evaluation by a team of doctors and other health professionals with a wide range of specialties. At this stage, a youngster may be diagnosed as having some form of autism. Kids with an autism spectrum disorder can usually be reliably diagnosed by age 2, though research suggests that some screening tests can be helpful at 18 months or even younger. Many individuals (e.g., family doctors, teachers, and moms/dads) may minimize signs of Aspergers at first, believing that kids will "catch up" with their friends. While you may be concerned about