How many autistic people are savants

View source. History Talk 5. Cats, watercolour by Gottfried Mind , an Autistic savant An Autistic savant is a term used for the person who has both Autism and another condition called Savant Syndrome.

Treffert, MD, describes Autistic savant which he termed as Savant Syndrome , in these words: [1] "Savant syndrome is a rare, but extraordinary, condition in which persons with serious mental disabilities, including autistic disorder, have some "island of genius" that stands in marked, incongruous contrast to the overall handicap. Fan Feed 1 Special interests 2 Stimming 3 Shutdown. Universal Conquest Wiki. In other words it is the luck of the draw and there is no one key piece of evidence or one specific disorder that has been shown to promote the ability in Savants.

The only common ground is actually the ability. According to published studies it seems that Savants have one thing in common their ability stems from an extraordinary ability to remember things. Whether it is musical, mathematical, language or the ability to remember dates times etc of events they all rely on their memory to fuel their ability.

For study purposes there has been a categorical approach. There are three main categories of Savants. Prodigious Savants are among the most rare. Prodigious Savants are Savants that have not only amazing abilities in comparison to their disability but that would be considered amazing even if they were not disabled. Splinter Skill Savants possess skills that are in direct contrast with their disabilities.

Talented Savants display a high level of ability that is in contrast to a disability. The abilities are further categorized as:. Savant Syndrome does not fall short when it comes to theories however there is agreement that no single theory can explain all Savants because there is such a tremendous range. Some specialized schools are emerging as well. For example, Soundscape Centre in Surrey, England began operating in as the only specialized educational facility in the world uniquely dedicated to the needs and potential of persons with sight loss and special musical abilities, including musical savants.

Orion Academy www. Hope University www. Dr Temple Grandin is well known as an international authority in her field of animal science. She is also well known for her books including Thinking in pictures and Translating with animals She is also autistic.

The book helps persons on the autistic spectrum, and their family members, teachers, counsellors and others to better understand and develop the career planning process for these special persons with special skills.

No model of brain function, including memory, will be complete until it can account for, and fully incorporate, the rare but spectacular condition of savant syndrome.

In the past decade, particularly, much progress has been made towards explaining this jarring juxtaposition of ability and disability, but many unanswered questions remain. However, interest in this fascinating condition is accelerating, especially since the discovery of savant-type skills in previously unimpaired older persons with FTD and other acquired savant instances. This finding has far-reaching implications regarding buried potential in some or, perhaps, all of us.

Advanced technologies will help in those investigations. Computed tomography CT and MRI provide stunningly high-resolution images of all the brain architecture, surface and deep, permitting detailed inspection of brain structure. However, studies of brain function , such as positron emission tomography PET , single photon emission CT SPECT or functional MRI, are much more informative regarding savant syndrome, and, indeed, autism itself, since these newer techniques provide information about the brain at work, rather than simply viewing brain architecture.

An even more recent imaging technique is diffusion tensor imaging, based on measuring water flow within neurons, which provides graphic images of brain connectivity between the brain hemispheres, within the brain hemispheres and between upper cortical and lower brain stem structures.

A related technique, diffusion tensor tracking, provides a direct visual view of the actual fibre tracks, or wiring, of the brain in great detail. One of the drawbacks to savant functional imaging research, especially art and music performance skills, has been the necessary immobilization of the subject when doing the imaging.

Also there have been many advances in electroencephalographic techniques, including magnetoencephalography, which provides a great deal of additional information beyond the usual electroencephalographic findings. Detailed, standardized neuropsychological test results can then be correlated with the imaging findings in savants in sufficiently large samples to move away from what have been so many single subject, anecdotal reports.

Control groups of non-impaired persons can be assembled to compare and contrast findings in both groups. Beyond that, since the interface between genius, prodigies and savants is an important, and in some ways a very narrow one, those persons should be included also in these multidisciplinary, multimodality, compare and contrast studies. Such studies can shed light on the debate regarding general intelligence versus separate intelligences.

Some researchers suggest that savants provide a unique window into the creative process itself. From studies already completed, important information has already emerged regarding brain function, brain plasticity, CNS compensation, recruitment and repair.

Savant syndrome, both in the congenital and acquired types, provides compelling evidence of remarkable brain plasticity. Indeed, brain plasticity will be a central aspect of all neuroscience research in the decades ahead. This was a generally pessimistic view of the ability of neuronal tissue to regenerate and rewire itself in the face of injury or disease.

But there is more to savant syndrome than genes, circuitry and the brain's marvellous intricacy. As important as those matters are in terms of scientific interest, there is also much we can learn from savant syndrome from the human interest perspective provided by these remarkable people, and the equally remarkable and dedicated families, caretakers, teachers and therapists who surround them.

For human potential consists of more than neurons and synapses. It also comprises, and is propelled along by, the vital forces of encouragement and reinforcement that flow from the unconditional love, belief, support and determination of those families and friends who not only care for the savant, but care about him or her as well.

More progress has been made in the past 15 years in better understanding and explaining savant syndrome than in the previous years. Also, that important inquiry continues, with the prospect of propelling us along further than we have ever been in unravelling the mystery of these extraordinary people and their remarkable abilities.

National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Darold A. Author information Copyright and License information Disclaimer. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Keywords: savant syndrome, autism, memory, brain, education. Introduction Without doubt, the best-known autistic savant is a fictional one, Raymond Babbitt, as portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in the movie Rain man.

What we do know After several centuries of reports and observations, we know that: a The condition is rare but one in 10 autistic persons show some savant skills In Rimland's survey of children with autism, were reported by parents to have special abilities and a 10 per cent incidence of savant syndrome has become the generally accepted figure in autistic disorder.

Future directions No model of brain function, including memory, will be complete until it can account for, and fully incorporate, the rare but spectacular condition of savant syndrome. References Barr M. Some notes on echolalia, with the report of an extraordinary case. Idiot savant with unusual mechanical ability. The music of light: the extraordinary story of Hikari and Kenzaburo Oe.

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