Children with autism adapt normally during a catching task requiring the cerebellum.

The cerebellum, which has been found to be abnormal in histopathological studies of autism, is important for motor adaptation. We studied controls and children with high functioning autism (HFA) performing a catching adaptation test that is known to be impaired following cerebellar damage. Results showed no differences in adaptation rates or after-effects for HFA subjects versus controls. The findings indicate normal motor adaptation in HFA, suggesting normal or compensated cerebellar function for this task.