Should autism and Aspergers be
considered separate disorders?
The debate in the medical
community rages on.
Hey, guys, this is Annie
guest-hosting for D News.
This week, the Scottish
singer Susan Boyle
made headlines by announcing
her diagnosis of Asperger's
Syndrome, opening
up new conversations
about the often
misunderstood condition.
Asperger's is
characterized by difficulty
in social interaction and
nonverbal communication,
and in some cases, clumsiness,
atypical use of language,
and other symptoms.
And currently, it's considered
part of autism spectrum
disorder, a diagnosis that's
increased significantly
over the past two decades.
According to the
British Medical Journal,
autism diagnoses were
rare in the UK and the US
until the '90s, when
the rates began surging.
They've since leveled
off in the UK,
but according to the
Center for Disease Control,
autism rates have continued
to grow in the US.
As of 2008, one in
88 children were
identified as being on
the autism spectrum.
The spectrum contains a range
of conditions, characterized
by social and
communicated challenges
in certain behavioral pattern.
ASD is about five times as
prevalent in boys as in girls.
The spike in rates is
not fully understood,
though it's been suggested
that the spike is related
to increased awareness and
changing diagnostic standards.
What the autism spectrum
entails is still
being hammered out in
the medical community.
Earlier this year, for
example, Asperger's Syndrome
was removed from
the DSM-5, which
is the manual psychiatrists
use to diagnose.
It was folded in with autism as
basically a higher functioning
form of the disorder.
Asperger's patients
don't typically
suffer from cognitive
or linguistic impairment
and are often above
average intelligence.
Still newer research finds
that there may in fact
be significant biological
differences between Asperger's
and autism.
Harvard neurologists
and psychiatrists
measured brain connectivity
among Asperger's and autism
patients using a measure
called EEG coherence.
They found that
this measure could
be a distinguishing factor but
that larger studies are needed,
also pointing out that
those differences can have
huge implications for
patients, their families,
and their caregivers.
As always, let us know your
thoughts in the comments.
For D News, this is Annie.
