Dr. Volkmar shares the symptoms associated with Asperger's syndrome.
Dr. Volkmar:
It varies a little bit depending on the age of the person, but often for kids with Asperger, especially school-age kids, these are kids who are talking up a blue streak. They are often very rigid. They like things to proceed exactly on a clock work. They are very intolerant of change, so they want things to be exactly on time. If it is 10:15, it is circle time. It is not 10:16, it is 10:15.
They often have unusual ways of speaking that’s kind of slightly pedantic, often a little bit monotonic voice. They have trouble carrying on conversations and horrible trouble with peers, and it’s surprising because often they are very bright and socially isolated. As they get older, interestingly, some of the kids, especially as adolescents and young adults, although they can do very well in some areas, they can really exceed academically, they often remain socially isolated, and many of them become somewhat depressed.
About Dr. Volkmar, M.D.:
Fred Volkmar, M.D. is the director of the Yale University Child Study Center and Irving B. Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Psychology at Yale University, where he heads the university's autism research and autism clinic. He is also Chief of Child Psychiatry at Yale-New Haven Hospital. His research focuses on understanding the fundamental nature of autism and developing better guidelines to diagnose autism and related conditions.
Visit Dr. Volkmar at Yale University School of Medicine