
incidence of symptoms of early infantile autism in
subsequently hospitalized psychiatric patients
this study was concerned with the
relationship between the occurrence dur-
ing the first two years of life of symptoms
of early infantile autism, as retrospective-
ly reported by the mothers of s's and
subsequent adjustment.  the mothers of
69 unmarried young hospitalized psychia-
tric patients were interviewed to deter-
mine the presence or absence of each of
28 different signs contained in a check
list.  the signs represent characteristic
features that are reportedly often found
in conjunction with early infantile autism.
as a control, 50 mothers of high school
students residing in the community and
presenting no significant adjustment prob-
lems were questioned in regard to the
very same items.
the results indicated that there were
significantly more symptoms reported for
patients than for normals, and that this
finding applied to the overall number of
symptoms as well as to several subcate-
gories of symptoms.  the items classified
under the heading of "social withdrawal"
appeared to be the most sensitive in dif-
ferentiating the groups.  it was also found
that 11 of the 28 signs distinguished be-
tween the patients and normals, with all
except one occurring more frequently in
the former group.  it was concluded that
a significant relationship existed between
the reported presence of symptoms that
are often associated with severe and early
ego impairment and subsequent status as
a mental hospital patient.  this study does
not provide any direct answer to the ques-
tion of what proportion of children with
infantile autism are later able to make an
adequate adjustment outside of a mental
hospital.
