Descriptive characteristics of children with autism at Autism Treatment Center, KSA Sarah Al Shirian a , Hussain Al Dera a,b, ⁎ a College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Saudi Arabia b King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC), Saudi Arabia HIGHLIGHTS • We conducted our study in the biggest governmental autism center in Riyadh, KSA. • We targeted children at early intervention stage (ages 2–8 years). • We found communication dysfunctions; for example only 37% can follow commands. • We found that the social interaction in these children was poor in N 50% of them. • We found 39% of the children were hyperactive. abstract article info Article history: Received 26 April 2015 Received in revised form 31 August 2015 Accepted 1 September 2015 Available online 5 September 2015 Keywords: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) Autism characteristics in sixty children (aged from 2 to 8) were assed. Their behavioral symptoms were evaluat- ed using the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC). ATEC has four main domains of autistic disorders (Speech/Language/Communication, Sociability, Sensory/Cognitive Awareness, and Health/Physical/Behavior) in children with clinical diagnosis by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) and Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Utilizing ATEC checklist, our study describes significant behavioral observations between autistic children which could effectively contribute to better under- standing and treatment during their early intervention stage. © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong disease that mainly affects the individual's ability to communicate or relate with their com- munity. ASD is a huge umbrella covering other cognitive conditions such as autism, childhood distinctive disorder, and Asperger syndrome [1]. The core symptoms of this syndrome are usually related to a mixture of impaired capacity for reciprocal socio-communicative interaction and restricted stereotyped repetitive repertoire of interests and activities [1]. In general, people with autism spectrum disorder may have decreased general intellectual ability [1]. Usually autistic symptoms arise in an early stage of the child's life between 1 and 3 years of age. The symptoms usually include: problem with eye contact, no response to name, defect in joint attention, poor skills in pretend play and imitation, and problems with nonverbal com- munication [2]. However, diagnoses of these children do not take place till they reach the age of 3 years, because parents do not notice these early signs but are only alarmed when their child doesn't start speaking [2]. ASD individuals do not always manifest in the same way. Features are variable, with severity ranging from mild to severe [2], which are sometimes associated with poor clinical outcomes. The pathophysiolog- ical mechanisms that underlie ASD are still not well understood [3]. However, genetic disposition and environmental factors together have shown to have a great impact on the presence and severity of the disor- der [3,4]. Centers of disease control and prevention (CDC) mentioned that 1 in 68 children around the US in 2010 are identified as having autism. In ad- dition, another study conducted by CDC 2010 has shown that ASD is more common in males (1 in 42) than in females (1 in 189) [2]. Also, World Health Organization (WHO) epidemiological data estimate the global prevalence of ASD is to be 1 person in 160, accounting for more than 7.6 million disability-adjusted life years and 0.3% of the global Physiology & Behavior 151 (2015) 604–608 ⁎ Corresponding author at: College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Saudi Arabia. E-mail address: derah@ksau-hs.edu.sa (H. Al Dera). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.09.001 0031-9384/© 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Physiology & Behavior journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/phb