TEHRAN – Iran’s Welfare Organization will set up round-the-clock centers in the current [Iranian calendar] year, which began on March 21, for caring autistic children across the country.

These centers will take care of children with autism for a limited period, for instance 15 days to 1 month, so that parents can rest or have a trip, IRNA quoted Maryam Pour-Seyyed, the director of the organization’s rehabilitation centers group, as saying on Monday.

Currently, there are 74 autism centers active in Iran, providing services to some 3,000 children, however there are no 24-7 centers, she added.

Autistic children should not be permanently held in such centers since this would mean banishing them from family and society, she highlighted.

Autistics’ main problem is poor communication, she said, adding that early diagnosis of autism spectrum will lead to having a normal life for 80 percent of patients.

Estimations demonstrate that less than 1 percent of the country’s population, meaning some 700,000 individuals are suffering from autism spectrum, she added.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism is a developmental disorder characterized by troubles with social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior.

The families of autistic children face a wide range of challenges from the high price of drugs to lack of standard schools and caring centers.

MAH/MQ/MG