title: Infantile autism: impact of diagnosis and repercussions in family relationships.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To analyse the context in which the diagnosis of autism is revealed and the impact of this revelation on family relationships.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a qualitative study with 10 families of autistic children assisted at the Psychosocial Care Centre for Children and Youths in a municipality of Paraíba. Data were collected between July and August 2013 through semi-structured interviews and interpreted using thematic content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The identified Main Unit of Analysis and the respective categories were: the impact of disclosing the diagnosis of autism to the family; characteristics of diagnosis disclosure: the place, time, and the dialogic relationship between the professional and the family; changes in family relationships and the mother's burden when caring for the autistic child.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The health professionals who report autism should better prepare the family to cope with the difficulties of this syndrome and autonomously care for the autistic child.
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal de Campina Grande (UFCG), Hospital Universitário Alcides Carneiro, Campina Grande, Paraíba, Brasil.
authors.forename: Rayssa Naftaly Muniz
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Pinto
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal de Campina Grande (UFCG), Curso de Enfermagem. Campina Grande, Paraíba, Brasil.
authors.forename: Isolda Maria Barros
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Torquato
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB), Curso de Pós-graduação em Enfermagem, Curso de Graduação em Enfermagem. João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brasil.
authors.forename: Neusa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Collet
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB), Curso de Pós-graduação em Enfermagem, Curso de Graduação em Enfermagem. João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brasil.
authors.forename: Altamira Pereira da Silva
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Reichert
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Programa de Pós-Graduação em Enfermagem. Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil.
authors.forename: Vinicius Lino de
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal de Campina Grande (UFCG), Curso de Enfermagem. Campina Grande, Paraíba, Brasil.
authors.forename: Alynne Mendonça
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Saraiva
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D002648:Child; D017281:Cost of Illness; D005195:Family Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans