How Well Can we Diagnose Autism in Adults? Evaluating an Informant-based Interview: The Dutch Developmental, Dimensional and Diagnostic Interview - Adult Version (3Di-Adult).
L J G Krijnen, K Greaves-Lord, W Mandy and 3 others
PMID 37530914WHAT IT FOUND
The Dutch 3Di-Adult interview correctly identified 80.6% of adults with autism and 93.3% of controls when compared to clinical diagnosis.
It takes about 42 minutes to administer but requires an informant and should not be used alone.
Key findings
01The interview correctly classified 50 of 62 participants with autism as having the condition, yielding a sensitivity of 80.6%.
02The interview correctly classified 28 of 30 control participants as not having autism, yielding a specificity of 93.3%.
03The mean administration time was 41.78 minutes, ranging from 19 to 84 minutes.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study used a case-control design with clearly defined groups (diagnosed vs. no diagnosis), which likely inflates sensitivity and specificity compared to real-world diagnostic settings where presentations are less clear. The sample was not representative, consisting mostly of females and individuals with higher intelligence levels, limiting generalizability to males or those with lower IQ. Informants and interviewers were not blind to the participants' diagnostic status, which could introduce bias. Inter-rater agreement for the A scale was difficult to interpret due to a small number of rated interviews and wide confidence intervals.
Declared interests
The study was funded by ZonMw. No other conflicts of interest were reported.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this interview is a standalone diagnostic tool. The authors explicitly state it should not be used alone for clinical decisions and must be part of a multi-modal assessment including direct observation and self-report.