Untitled

[mumbaba]

i am wooried about my nefews development he is 18 mths old and he has no speach he makes sounds but these are repetative noises with no real meaning.He also is obessed with spinning balls an wheels and offers no i contact, he rarely answers when called am very worried can someone offer some adivse?

Your nephew may have a hearing loss or he may be slightly delayed.

Does your nephew communicate in non-verbal ways, such as by pointing or gesturing to things that he wants? Can he follow a point? Does he like to share things with others or does he bring things to show to others? No speech at 18mths isn't the end of the world provided that the child is still communicating by other means.

I would recommend completing the CHAT test which is a good screen for picking up ASD in youngsters:

paains.org.uk/Autism/chat.htm

If you are really concerned, then you could ask your sister/brother to have your nephew referred to a community paed.?

he doesnt really play with any body he always seems to be in his own world. We meet quite regularly and i have 3 children of my own and my youngest is only a little older i also have another nephew of a simiular age him and my daughter play together along side my 4 year old. and my nephew seems to be very much alone in his play.Thank you for your suggestions will pass them on to my brother.

What does your brother and the little boys mother think ?

very hard he's there first baby and they don't see anything wrong.

Unless they are worried or a professional picks anything up there's not allot that can be done ... unless, you are brave enough to voice your own concerns to your brother.

You mentioned you would pass info' on to your brother, does this mean you've already spoken about it o him?

Do you get an automatic developmental check with a health visitor in your area at 2 - 2 1/2 yrs? Does he attend any other child care ie nursery or minder? Only asking 'cause they may have picked up on something too.

Do get them to have his hearing checked

Does your nephew point? Does he follow points?

Pointing is very important. If your nephew is not pointing at 18mths then it could well indicate autism - and the earlier your nephew gets in the 'system' the better, for example, referrals to SALTS can take months and months. It's likely that your brother/SIL have noticed that their ds is different from his peers but it's also likely that they are hoping 'more time' will sort out any problems. In some cases, a wait and see approach can work out but if your nephew does have a social communication disorder then his problems will be with him for life.

HVs - and GPs for that matter - are not always clued up on autism, go directly to a community or a developemental paed.

developmental paed.

thanks for all your advise will speak with my brother and pass on your advise. many thanks x