[Early signs of autism and family films: a new study by informed evaluators and those unaware of the diagnosis].

Since the initial individualization of infantile autism by Kanner, subsequent work has attempted to define the age at which disorders appear, their symptomatology and their specificity. Initially, retrospective studies based on questionnaires and interviews with parents were conducted in order to determine the age of at which the first signs appeared. Combined with interviews, clinical observations have provided incontestable aid for describing the early signs of autism. The study of home movies taken by parents before their infant's disorders were recognized has led to a new approach to the initials signs of autism. Our study is a continuation of work in our Child Psychiatry Unit under way since 1984. The aim of this work is the symptomatological and comparative analysis of home movies of 14 autistic and 10 normal infants, during the first two years of their life. Each film was scored for the 0-8, 9-17 and 18-24 month periods. Based on the use of the Infant Behavioral Summarized Evaluation (IBSE), this study confirms prior data and also shows the emergence of very early disorders, perceptible within the first few months even by blind evaluators: a docile baby, showing no overt manifestations, not seeking contact, with an absence of pre-language. Even so, the results require caution when interpreting for methodological reasons which are discussed.