Meet Angie

Angie is a 4 year old who was born full term following an uneventful pregnancy. She is youngest child in a family of three children. Both parents work outside the home. Angie’s maternal grandfather took care of all the children when they were toddlers and continues to be with them in the afternoons until the parents return from work. Up until she was about 18 months of age, Angie’s development seemed to be average, except for recurrent otitis media. Her parents began to be concerned about Angie’s development when they noticed that she didn’t seem to be talking as much as her older brothers did at her age.

The family’s primary care doctor thought her language delay could be due to hearing problems related to the otitis. She recommended tubes be placed in her ears after several rounds of antibiotics did not seem to be resolving the otitis problems.

Her communication did not improve after tubes were placed, and the family now reported increased agitation and “odd” behavior. The doctor referred the family for a more comprehensive workup at the university affiliated child development center in Seattle.

Following a full developmental and medical evaluation Angie was diagnosed with moderate to severe autism. She was then referred for early intervention services and was subsequently enrolled in the developmental pre-school program in her local school district about 60 miles from Seattle.