Kanner's syndrome

Kanner syndrome or early childhood autism (ECA) is a disorder in mental development in which a child has problems with communication, social perception, and underdeveloped emotional expression.

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Causes Canner syndrome

Nowadays, the exact causes of Kanner syndrome are not known. It is believed that the disease is hereditary. It can occur under the influence of the following risk factors:

• intrauterine infections;
• asphyxia that occurs during childbirth;
• injury sustained by a child during birth - neck or head injury.

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Pathogenesis

The pathogenesis of the syndrome, like many other psychopathies, has not been studied. There are several mechanisms for the development of the disease under the guise of "symptomatic autism", as a result of the development of brain infections or during the recovery period after encephalitis (this syndrome is called postencephalitic autism). It is now believed that ASD is an early form of schizophrenia that develops in a child in the first 2 years of life. Boys are more likely to suffer from this disease.

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Symptoms Canner syndrome

Symptoms of Kanner syndrome include the following conditions:

• The child is unable to maintain eye contact with people, whether parents or strangers;
• His actions have a certain sequence with constant repetition of monotonous movements;
• There is a lack of understanding of threat and danger, as well as the ability to assess the situation;
• Echolalia is babbling that is repeated many times; instead of normal speech, it imitates its sound;
• Aggressive behavior towards loved ones or strangers if they try to contact him;
• Reworking games to suit one’s own vision, ignoring accepted rules and inventing one’s own, which is why the child is unable to play with peers;
• The patient communicates with objects but does not want to communicate with people;
• Mutism, which is considered one of the main symptoms, is when the child stubbornly remains silent and does not respond when someone speaks to him or tries to talk to him.

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First signs

The first signs of Kanner syndrome are easy to detect, since the child is distinguished by his unusual behavior from an early age - weak expression of emotions, frequent fixation on certain objects and repetition of actions, taciturnity, refusal to make contact. Isolation itself is not an indicator of mental retardation, but it is precisely this that becomes the most expressive symptom in the diagnostic process.

Complications and consequences

The consequence of ASD can be a disruption of the patient’s emotional connections and contacts with society.

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Diagnostics Canner syndrome

In addition to Kanner syndrome, children may also have other mental disorders, such as neurosis or schizophrenia, and some healthy children may also show signs that are characteristic of autism. Therefore, if suspicions arise, you should immediately take your child to a child psychiatrist for an examination so that he or she can diagnose the presence or absence of the disease. However, to make a diagnosis, an examination by a psychiatrist is often not enough - an examination by a neurologist, teacher, pediatrician and psychologist is also necessary.

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Tests

In some cases, to make a diagnosis, a psychiatrist requires information about the general condition of the sick child’s body – for this, he may refer him for urine and blood tests.

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Instrumental diagnostics

To rule out other mental illnesses and confirm the diagnosis, your doctor may need to perform an electroencephalogram (EEG) procedure.

Differential diagnosis

Kanner's syndrome must be differentiated from Asperger's syndrome, Rett syndrome, as well as mental retardation and sensory disorders. It is also important to distinguish ASD from the early stage of schizophrenia and deprivation syndrome (so-called hospitalism).

Comparative characteristics of Asperger's and Kanner's syndrome

	Early childhood autism (Kanner syndrome)	Autistic psychopathy (Asperger's syndrome)
First deviations	Usually in the first months of life	Significant deviations that begin at age 3
Visual connection with other people	At first, usually turns away, later begins to establish contact, but in rare cases; evasive and short-term reaction	In rare cases and for a short time
Speech skills	Starts to speak late, speech is poorly developed (about 50% of sick children) Severe delay in speech development Echolalia is observed (the communicative function of speech is impaired)	Speech skills develop early Correct and literate speech develops early Speech is used for communication, but there are still violations - speech is spontaneous
Mental abilities	Specific structure of intelligence, abilities are significantly reduced	In most cases, intelligence is high or above average
Motor skills	There are no violations unless there is a concomitant disease.	Motor problems - lack of coordination, awkwardness, clumsiness

Treatment Canner syndrome

It is very important to provide the child with classes with special teachers. Kanner syndrome is not accompanied by an intellectual disability, but due to emotional disorders, these children cannot study according to the standard program. Together with doctors, the teacher must choose a suitable method of learning for the child, as well as an individual program in which all his abilities will be used to the maximum.

Communication between the child and the psychologist is also important, because various psychological methods can help develop social communication skills and teach how to adapt to a group. There are special methods for autistics, for example, holding therapy (a method using forced hugs), it helps strengthen the emotional connection between the sick child and his parents.

It is also necessary to pay close attention to the diet of a child with Kenner syndrome - such children need a special diet. Since they have a disorder in the functioning of digestive enzymes, the body's ability to break down certain types of proteins found in flour products and milk is reduced. Because of this, the patient should limit the consumption of dairy and flour products.

Participation of the little autistic person's family in the rehabilitation process is also very important. Parents should not show misunderstanding and coldness towards the child, as this negatively affects the treatment process. The child should be surrounded with care, love and support - this greatly contributes to improving the patient's condition.

Among the methods of therapy are also developmental courses of psychological support, conducted both individually and in groups:

• classes with a speech therapist;
• therapeutic physical training exercises;
• procedures of medical work;
• dancing, music and drawing.

Medicines

Many doctors are very cautious when prescribing psychotropic drugs to autistics, as there is no reliable information that they have a positive effect on the patient. These drugs should be used if the child is overexcited, tries to physically harm himself, and has problems with sleep. Antidepressants (Amitriptyline) and neuroleptics (in small doses) are used for treatment in these cases - usually Sonapax, Haloperidol, Rispolept.

Also, in the process of therapy with the use of drugs, drugs are used that help improve metabolism in brain tissue (these are Aminalon, Cerebrolysin, as well as glutamic acid), and nootropic substances (Nootropil).

Vitamins and physiotherapy treatment

Vitamin therapy can also improve the patient's condition. Vitamins from groups B, C, and PP are used to treat Kanner's syndrome.

Physiotherapeutic treatment procedures are also performed - magnetic therapy, water treatment, electrophoresis. Children also do physical education, receiving the necessary physical load.

Folk remedies

In order to calm an autistic person, it is sometimes recommended to use ground nutmeg, as it helps improve blood circulation in the brain and has a calming effect. It is necessary to take a tiny dose of this ingredient and dissolve it in a small amount of milk. But it should be remembered that the nut contains safrole (a psychotropic substance), so it is better not to use this method of folk treatment without consulting a doctor.

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Herbal treatment

After consultation with a doctor, you can use soothing herbal infusions as an auxiliary method of therapy.

When treating with herbs, you can use a decoction of field bindweed, lemon balm, and also the leaves of the ginkgo biloba plant. This medicine is prepared as follows: pour 5 g of crushed ingredients into 250 ml of water and boil for about 10-15 minutes, then cool. Drink the decoction 3 times a day (25-30 minutes before meals) 1-2 tbsp.

Prevention

There are no specific preventive methods to prevent a child from developing Kanner syndrome. But it is possible to reduce the possible risk of this disease if future parents approach the pregnancy planning process seriously. Even before conception, it is necessary to undergo an examination by specialists to identify and treat chronic diseases or infections. Also, a pregnant woman should regularly visit a women's consultation, maintain a healthy lifestyle and avoid contact with infectious patients.

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Forecast

Only the attending physician who has been observing the child on a regular basis can make a prognosis about the patient's future condition. There are many cases that demonstrate that with quality treatment, Kanner's syndrome, even in a severe form of the disease, will not prevent the patient from developing, and weak signs of the disease can be made almost invisible by effectively selected therapy.

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