Broj djece s dijagnozom autizma je u stalnom porastu. Autizam je neurobiološki razvojni poremećaj koji se javlja u ranom djetinjstvu, obično prije tridesetog mjeseca djetetovog života. Iako djeca s autizmom izgledaju kao i sva ostala zdrava djeca, ona ipak imaju znatne životne teškoće, koje postaju sve izrazitije ukoliko se što prije ne zatraži pomoć stručnjaka kako bi se dijete uključilo u odgovarajuće terapijske programe. Obilježja autizma su: teškoće u socijalnim interakcijama, teškoće verbalne i neverbalne komunikacije neuobičajeno ponašanje, ograničeni interesi te različite motoričke smetnje i stereotipije. Kvalitetna i dobro osmišljena terapija od velike im je pomoći. Dokazano je da se ranim prepoznavanjem i ciljanom ranom intervencijom značajno može poboljšati životni ishod osobe s autizmom. Kako uzrok ovog poremećaja nije poznat te također ne postoji ni jedinstvena intervencija, postoje broje terapije i pristupi s ciljem prevencije i ublažavanja simptoma.

The number of children diagnosed with autism is steadily increasing. Autism is a neurobiological developmental disorder that occurs in early childhood, usually before the thirtieth month of a child's life. Even though children with autism seem like all other healthy children, they still have considerable life difficulties, which become increasingly emphasized if they do not seek the help of experts to bring the child into appropriate therapeutic programs. The characteristics of autism are: difficulties in social interaction, difficulties in verbal and nonverbal communication, unusual behavior, limited interests, and various motor disturbances and stereotypes. Good quality and well-designed therapy is of great help to them. It has been proven that early detection and targeted early intervention can significantly improve the lifespan of autistic people. As the cause of this disorder is not known, there is no single intervention, but there are numbers of therapies and approaches to prevent and mitigate the symptoms.