We have learned, each individual with autism is unique. Each person with autism's signs and symptoms present differently. This means that there is no one course of treatment for all people with autism. Experts agree that the earlier a child with autism receives services, the better the outcome will be.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that early intervention (EI) services be available to any child younger than three with developmental delays or conditions that are likely to result in developmental delays. These services are administered on the state level, and children may not need to have a formal diagnosis of ASD to be eligible. The goal of these Early Intervention Services is to minimize the impact of a disability on a child's development.

Once a child has been diagnosed with ASD, there are autism-specific, early intervention therapies that have been shown to improve outcomes. Many types of early interventions have been developed and used (e.g., behavioral interventions, communications interventions, school-based interventions).

We have developed a brief synopsis of each of these types of interventions and made them accessible to those who might be interested in learning more. If you are interested in learning more about the various types of autism interventions, just click on Types of Autism Interventions, or you can move on to Topic 3: Creating and Autism-Friendly Library.