[Savant-syndrome - something for something?]

Abstract

In our review we describe the development of savant syndrome as a concept, its historical antecedents, most important characteristics and spectrum of savantism, and the frequency and features of the most common savant abilities. We present the relationship between autism and savant syndrome, the eff ect of genetic and familial factors, and the characteristics of savant memory functions and intelligence. We provide an overview of the most important theories explaining savantism and the future direction of research.