Defeat Autism in Nigeria” project

Autism: Third most chronic childhood ailment – NGO• Friday, Apr 4, 2008
Olg Health Foundation and Autism Centre, a non-governmental organisation, has described autism as the third most chronic childhood ailment in the world.

In a statement Tuesday in Abuja, the group said that one out of every 150 children suffered from autism, while a child was being diagnosed with the illness every 16 minutes of the day.

“These children have difficulty in perceiving their environment; hence

they need supportive intervention in order for them to function in the society.

“Most of them have no speech. Even if they do, it is delayed and not at par with their age. Behaviorally, most of the affected children do shout, scream, roll on the floor (tantrum) in public,” it said .

The statement said that autism was associated with other severe inappropriate behaviours, including self-injurious mannerisms like hitting of head on the wall, laughing and giggling for no apparent reason.

It said that the sensory perception impairment also made affected children

to cover their ears at some sounds, refuse eating and sleeping, while avoiding being touched and cuddled.

It noted that some of the affected children tended to avoid eye-to-eye contacts, while others had serious attention problems, making it difficult for them to adapt in a school environment.

“That explains why such children are usually rejected in schools,” it said.

The statement, however, said that some biomedical treatment options and applied behavioral speech therapy had been able to achieve significant improvements in the children’s communication, socialisation and physical disabilities.

Meanwhile, Olg Health Foundation will on Wednesday mark the World Autism Awareness Day and launch “Defeat Autism in Nigeria” project.

The purpose of the project is to encourage the federal government and the National Assembly to initiate legislation on autism-control strategies

and on the protection of children suffering the ailment.