Comorbidities 70 with asd have 1 40 have 2 other

Comorbidities
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70% with ASD have 1+; 40% have 2+ other diagnoses
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Intellectual disability (intellectual developmental disorder)
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Language disorder
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ADHD
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Developmental coordination disorder
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Anxiety disorders
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Depression
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Specific learning disability

Intellectual Features
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IQ varies
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70% are estimated to have co-occurring ID
• No distinctive IQ profile
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Splinter skills (25%)
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Autistic savants (5%)
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Typically Information is not used to enhance everyday living
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Theory of Mind: capacity to mindread/awareness of mental states in
themselves and others
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Executive functioning deficits
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Weak central coherence (parts instead of whole)

Prevalence and Developmental
Course
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Prevalence
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1-2% of population
• Occurs in all social classes and cultures
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Many causes for the apparent dramatic increase have been proposed… but
none scientifically substantiated
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4-5 times more common in boys
• when girls are affected they tend to have more severe intellectual impairments
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bias in diagnosis/in the absence of co-occurring intellectual or behavioural deficits, girls
may be better able to cope with same level of ASD symptoms
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Clinical manifestations are similar, but girls are better at pretend play

Prevalence and Developmental
Course
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Developmental Course
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Most often identified around age 2 (12 to 24 months)
•
Studies show between 6-12 months of age, infants failed to gain new social skills or showed a loss of
previously acquired skills
• Recent findings shows that a gradual decline in eye contact over the first six months may precede
the gradual loss of specific social skills that occurs between 6-12 months
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Children with ASD develop along different pathways:
• Some show abnormal behaviour soon after birth
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25% or more show normal develop for first year or longer and then regressions
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Others show improvement over time.
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Usually a chronic and lifelong condition
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Most show gradual improvement of symptoms with age, but continue to
display social impairments compared to others
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IQ and language development are the strongest predictors of adult outcomes

Causes
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Genetic Influences
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Heritability
• Genetic disorders
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Brain abnormalities
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Structural abnormalities
• Functional abnormalities
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Biochemical

Causes
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ASD is a biologically based
neurodevelopmental disorder with
multiple causes involving genetic and
environmental risk factors.

Problems in Early Development
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