TITE: ESTABLISHING AN INTEGRATED DIAGNOSTIC PROFILE OF AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (ASD) THROUGH THE USE OF ESSENCE FRAMEWORK. THE CASE STUDY OF A 3-YEAR-OLD INFANT
Neurodevelopmental disorders appear in early childhood and cause serious impairment in several areas. These are characterized by damages or delays in development of functions closely associated with the biological aging of the central nervous system. Neurodevelopmental disorders include speech and language disorders, learning disorders, motor and divisive disorders such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Aiming to explore the various phenotypic characteristics of these disorders as well as their co-morbidity or coexistence, an emerging body of studies stressed the importance of both early multidisciplinary assessment and intervention in the framework of these disorders. Due to the complexity of neurodevelopmental disorders there should be specific diagnostic groups so as to apply timely and multifactorial diagnoses. Early Symptomatic Syndromes Eliciting Neurodevelopmental Clinical Examinations (ESSENCE) are considered as an assessment concept that could contribute to multifactorial early diagnosis of neurodevelopmental disorders. Early, adequate, and comprehensive diagnosis conduces to early, effective, and well adapted to individual’s needs intervention programs. In the current study, the ESSENCE framework was used as the key diagnostic approach for both definitive and multifactorial diagnosis of a 3-year-old infant with a wide range of impairments. Article visualizations
