Abstract

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are common neurodevelopmental disorders that occur along a broad continuum of severity with impairments in social interactions, communication, and behavior.

This review highlights recent advances in autism research that shed light on the causes of the disorder and that have implications for clinical practice.

It focuses on: 1) The rising prevalence of ASD with attention to recent epidemiological studies 2) Important genetic discoveries that affect clinical evaluation of children with ASD 3) Active areas of research in cognitive neuroscience that seek to explain the underlying mechanisms of a complex disorder 4) Important studies on clinical populations with implications for screening and early identification of infants and toddlers with ASD