Symptoms:

People with Asperger syndrome become over-focused or obsessed on a single object or topic, ignoring all others. They want to know everything about this topic, and often talk about little else.

• Children with Asperger syndrome will present many facts about their subject of interest, but there will seem to be no point or conclusion.
• They often do not recognize that the other person has lost interest in the topic.
• Areas of interest may be quite narrow, such as an obsession with train schedules, phone books, a vacuum cleaner, or collections of objects.

People with Asperger do not withdraw from the world in the way that people with autism withdraw. They will often approach other people. However, their problems with speech and language in a social setting often lead to isolation.

• Their body language may be off.
• They may speak in a monotone, and may not respond to other people's comments or emotions.
• They may not understand sarcasm or humor, or they may take a figure of speech literally.
• They do not recognize the need to change the volume of their voice in different settings.
• They have problems with eye contact, facial expressions, body postures, or gestures (nonverbal communication).
• They may be singled out by other children as "weird" or "strange."

People with Asperger syndrome have trouble forming relationships with children their own age or other adults, because they:

• Are unable to respond emotionally in normal social interactions
• Are not flexible about routines or rituals
• Have difficulty showing, bringing, or pointing out objects of interest to other people
• Do not express pleasure at other people's happiness

Children with Asperger syndrome may show delays in motor development, and unusual physical behaviors, such as:

• Delays in being able to ride a bicycle, catch a ball, or climb play equipment
• Clumsiness when walking or doing other activities
• Repetitive behaviors, in which they sometimes injure themselves
• Repetitive finger flapping, twisting, or whole body movements

Many children with Asperger syndrome are very active, and may also be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Anxiety or depression may develop during adolescence and young adulthood. Symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder and a tic disorder such as Tourette syndrome may be seen.

Signs and tests:

There is not a standardized (used and accepted by almost everyone) test used to diagnose Asperger syndrome.

Most doctors look for a core group of behaviors to help them diagnose Asperger syndrome. These behaviors include:

• Abnormal eye contact
• Aloofness
• Failure to turn when called by name
• Failure to use gestures to point or show
• Lack of interactive play
• Lack of interest in peers

Symptoms may be noticeable in the first few months of life. Problems should be obvious by age 3 years.

Physical, emotional, and mental tests are done to rule out other causes and look more closely for signs of this syndrome. The team that will see your child includes a psychologist, neurologist, psychiatrist, speech therapist, and other professionals who are experts in diagnosing children with Asperger syndrome.