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Diagnosis
Blood tests and brain scans are inaccurate autism diagnostic tools. Instead, doctors use interviews and observations. Does the person exhibit speech delays, contact avoidance, repetitive movements, or social impairment? The more signs the doctor can pinpoint, the more autism is likely.
Since an autism diagnosis relies on observations, doctors must wait until babies age. Very small children can't describe how they experience the world, and their brain cells are still growing and changing. Only by age 2 or 3 does the full picture of autism appear.
How Accurate Are Autism Symptoms?
Why Self-Diagnosis of Autism Can Be a Problem
What’s the Earliest Age Autism Can Be Diagnosed At? (2020)
How to Test for (Diagnose) Adult Autism
Is Autism Being Overdiagnosed? (The Status in 2020)
How Autism Is Diagnosed (Children & Adults)
Is My Child Autistic? At-Home Help for Diagnosis