Asperger's syndrome is a form of autism. It will usually manifest in children and continue into adulthood, with affected individuals showing impaired social interaction, communication skills and often showing a restriction in areas if interest.

It is more common in boys than girls, and can be so mild that if undetected as Asperger's, an individual may live their whole lives with the rest of society considering them simply as eccentrics. Individuals will probably have poor social skills, struggle to interact with the rest of the community and additionally, they may have quite an obsessive interest in a specific topic that is so all-occupying that to the rest of the world, they may not be seen having
Aspergers, but simply as odd people who are self absorbed and who are too keen on a particular subject.

Some typical symptoms of Asperger's include:

1. You will notice in childhood that once the child has learnt how to talk, they may talk endlessly about one thing without caring whether or not the intended listener is paying attention. In a neurotypical child, they seek your attention when they speak – they go as far as to touch and shake you so that you can listen to what they have to say.

2. They may appear not to care about others feelings – another child falling or hurting themselves does not produce empathy or pity in the child. They will seem detached and not to care, a symptom that continues into adulthood.

3. Communication basics, such as facial expressions, eye contact, and change in voice tone or posture are often lacking. They will not show excitement or sadness or any other range of emotions through their faces normally.

4. They may lack a sense of humor. At around the age of 2 or 3, most children will start to understand humor, laugh at things or make themselves the object to be laughed at. A child with Asperger's may appear to find nothing funny – in the same way that they will not display excitement or sadness.

5. Their voices, when they speak, are generally flat. In most people, tone variation is a subconscious inborn quality. With Asperger's, it seems never to develop.

6. Poor motor co-ordination. They move clumsily, they fall over easily and tasks that other children at their age otherwise perform with ease may be difficult or even impossible for them depending on the severity.

7. They have a rigid posture – they seem to lack flexibility. Until they are almost teenagers, children are literally “all over the place” if they are developing well. With Asperger's, even their gait seems too rigid; they seem to make a big effort to have proper posture.

Asperger's by itself can go completely undiagnosed. This means that it's possible that an individual could live with it for life without diagnosis. As a parent, all you can do is watch for developmental milestones, especially the ones listed above.

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Remember that Asperger's does not affect speech development or intelligence, so it is the other signs that will be telling. To learn more about Asperger's join our growing community of parents who have children  with Asperger's Syndrome at http://www.parentingaspergerscommunity.com/