The influence of anatomical variations of the cerebellum in individuals with autism spectrum disorder

Autism is characterized by the rupture in the fundamental processes of socialization, communication, and learning. The diagnosis of the disorder requires at least six behavioral criteria, such as the use of nonverbal forms of communication and social interaction, non-development of interpersonal relationships, lack of sharing experiences and communication, and lack of social or emotional reciprocity. as the cerebellum is primarily responsible for motor function, it also plays a role in multisensory integration, which in turn receives projections of all its modalities, such as self-movement that requires integration of vestibular, visual, proprioceptive, and somatosensory information. The objective of this work was to review the cerebellar anatomical changes in individuals diagnosed with ASD and discuss the complications of these alterations for the development and integration of body systems. This is an integrative review through a search strategy in the PubMed/MEDLINE, Scielo and Science Direct databases. The terms established to compart the search were "cerebellum", "autism, "anatomical alteration, "disturb" and "human". Some changes found in individuals with autism are hypoplasia in the vermis subregion, abnormal density of Purkinje cells, and abnormalities of their deep nuclei, including fastigeal, globous, and emboliform nuclei. Autism spectrum disorder is a syndrome from early changes. All characteristics of autism indicate that biological mechanisms are central in the etiology of the process.