The number of people with autism in Kumanovo is growing, but there is still no accurate data, say experts who work with this category of citizens on the eve of tomorrow's International Autism Awareness Day. They recommend that the community, institutions, families, the system provide them with support.

– The number of people with autism is increasing from year in year. Partly because there are mechanisms for its early detection, but still that figure is staggering. It is thought that 0,6 percent of the population may have symptoms of the autistic spectrum, which leads us to the fact that in Europe alone there are about five million people with symptoms of autism. Of the total number, 0,5 percent have above-average intellectual abilities and belong to the group of savants - says a special education teacher for MIA. dr Milena Ilic Pesic.

As he explains, autism is a developmental disorder that appears in the first three years of a child's life and affects the normal development of social and communication skills.

- The reasons for the appearance of autism are not exactly known and there are many theories about its occurrence. Early diagnosis, proper therapy, and educational intervention can reduce the difficulties children with autism have, but they will always exist to some extent. A person with autism, depending on the level of disability, will always need some form of support, says Ilic Pesic.

People with autism show significant difficulties in three specific areas of their development, communication, social skills, flexible behavior.

In terms of communication, the type and degree of difficulty varies from person to person. People with autism have difficulty expressing themselves and understanding other people, especially abstract concepts. While some individuals with autism can speak fairly well, others may show very limited ability to communicate despite normal intellectual development. Special education teacher Pešić Ilic says that people with autism have significant difficulties in building relationships and encounter problems in understanding the social rules for building relationships and interacting with peers. As a result, they may be indifferent or repulsive to people who try to contact them. Without help from adults, children with autism remain isolated from people and the environment as other children give up trying to interact or play with them, at school or on the playground. In terms of flexible behavior, people with autism have a rigid behavior and a very limited range of interests and activities. They want to track precise daily activities. They can be very attached to seemingly ordinary objects, as for example pebbles, and to insist on carrying them everywhere with them. The same body movement can be repeated repeatedly, as for example finger movement or using objects in a limited way (stacking pencils in the same order). When these obsessive activities or routines are unexpectedly disrupted or changed, the person becomes anxious.

- Recently, various popular theories have led to the connection of the vaccine and the development of autism. However, it is impossible to confirm with certainty, because there are cases of children who were not vaccinated at an early age and suffer from some disorders who are they part of the autistic spectrum. Autism, if diagnosed, which in itself is a complex process, remains for life. Autism is not a disease but a condition that can be improved in all segments of life with early intervention and proper treatment, says Ilic Pesic.

World Autism Day was declared by the United Nations General Assembly in 2007 year as annual day to draw attention to the urgent needs of people with autism around the world.

- It is the duty of a society to accept people with autism and to give them all the necessary help and support so that they can develop their potential, concludes Ilic Pesic.