San Diego study to look at Autism Symptoms in infants

One-hundred local pediatricians, 25 scientists and more than 50 researchers will kick off the first and only study that tests for autism and treats children that are less than a year old, NBC 7/39 medical correspondent Peggy Pico reported.

A $10 million research grant to the UCSD Autism Center for Excellence could be the key in finding the cause of the brain disorder that affects one in 150 children, said lead researcher, Dr. Eric Courchesne.
"It's a developmental disorder that affects the way the brain grows -- gene abnormalities -- we need to get to the real cause of this disorder, which is genetic," Courchesne said.
In the study, children 12 months or younger will first be screened by dozens of local pediatricians. If a baby is found to have autism symptoms, the child will get more tests, including brain scans.
Mother Traci Tasto has an autistic son. She said he was diagnosed when he was 2-and-a-half years old. Intense therapy helped him some, but Tasto said the earlier the diagnosis, the better the odds of improving autistic behavior.
"It's huge for parents to be able to diagnose their children and at 12 months old -- it's huge," Testo said.
For more information, visit the Web site for the Center For Autism Research