Characterizing psychiatric comorbidity in children with autism spectrum disorder receiving publicly funded mental health services.
Lauren Brookman-Frazee, Nicole Stadnick, Colby Chlebowski and 2 others
PMID 28914082WHAT IT FOUND
92% of children with autism in public mental health care had another psychiatric diagnosis, averaging 2.80 other psychiatric diagnoses.
ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, anxiety, and mood problems often overlapped.
Key findings
0192% of children met criteria for at least one non-ASD psychiatric diagnosis, and the average number of non-ASD diagnoses was 2.80.
02The most common diagnostic categories were ADHD (78%), oppositional defiant disorder (58%), any anxiety disorder (56%), and any mood disorder (30%).
03The most common comorbidity profile was ADHD plus oppositional defiant disorder plus anxiety, seen in 17% of children.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample came from children already receiving publicly funded mental health services, so the rates may not apply to all children with autism. All children had at least one challenging behavior, so the findings do not speak to children with autism who do not have behavior problems. Psychiatric diagnoses came only from caregiver report, and caregivers may have difficulty separating autism symptoms from other psychiatric symptoms. The interview was adapted for autism and was not normed for this population, so its accuracy for some symptoms is uncertain. The study used DSM-IV categories, not current DSM-5 categories.
Declared interests
The supplied article text does not report author conflict-of-interest declarations. The publication types indicate NIH extramural support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these rates as applying to all children with autism. The sample came from publicly funded mental health programs, and all children had challenging behavior.