Titre : | Attention to eyes is present but in decline in 2--6-month-old infants later diagnosed with autism (06/11/2013) |
Auteurs : | Warren JONES ; Ami KLIN |
Type de document : | Article : Texte imprimé et/ou numérique |
Dans : | Nature (N° ind, 06/11/2013) |
Article en page(s) : | 17 p. |
Langues: | Français |
Concepts : |
Traitement de l'information visuelle
Trouble du spectre de l'autisme Développement de l'enfant Interaction précoce Nourrisson Socialisation Personne avec autisme |
Résumé : |
Deficits in eye contact have been a hallmark of autism 1,2 since the condition's initial description 3.They are cited widely as a diagnostic feature 4 and figure prominently in clinical instruments 5; however, the early onset of these deficits has not been known.Here we show in a prospective longitudinal study that infants later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) exhibit mean decline in eye fixation from 2 to 6 months of age,a pattern not observed in infants who do not develop ASD. These observations mark the earliest known indicators of social disability in infancy, but also falsify a prior hypothesis : in the first month sof life,this basic mechanism of social adaptive action—eye looking—is not immediately diminished in infants later diagnosed with ASD; instead, eye looking appears to begin at normative levels prior to decline. The timing of decline highlights a narrow developmental window and reveals the early derailment of processes that would otherwise have a key role in canalizing typical social development. Finally, the observation of this decline in eye fixation—rather than outright absence—offers a promising opportunity for early intervention that could build on the apparent preservation of mechanisms subserving reflexive initial orientation towards the eyes. |
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