ARTICLE - AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER

ASD;

disorder marked by social communication difficulties and restricted, repetitive behaviours

what are common issues of ASD

Difficulties adhering to social norms and rigid behaviours

what are the comorbidites of ASD

intellectual disability, language disorders, epilepsy, sleep problems, anxiety, and depression

facts on ASD

-Prevalence (had increased, so why)
-women or men? where is it also more
-genetic factors %, environmental factors %

• prevalence at age 8 has increased from 1.1 tot 2.3%, which is likely due to changes in criteria, increased awareness, better case ascertainment and broader inclusion of ASD

• higher in boys (3.7%) than girls (0.9%), but also in transgenders, younger siblings, Black children

• genetic factors; 81%

  • environmental factors: 14-22%

genetic factors overlap with other developmental and psychiatric disorders. Name those.

risk genes affect gene expression, neurogenesis, chromatin modfication, and synaptic function.
Maternal facotrs
→ paternal age, medication during pregnancy, timing between pregnancies

the presenting symptoms of ASD vary based on age, cognitive ability, language levels and sex. Talk about early childhood sympotms and older childhood

early childhood: delays in language, lack of responsiveness and repetitive behaviour

older childhood: rigidity, insistence on routines, lack of interest in socializing, restricted play

When is the M-CHAT-R used
- explain what the positive screen leads to

in primary care for children aged 16 to 30 months, iwth a hgih sensitivity and specificity when follow-up questions are used.

• positive screen leads to comprehensive evaluation and referral for early beahvioural intervention

what is the gold standard for diagnosing ASD

clinical consensus based on developmental history and behavioural observation using standardized tools iwth good sensitivity and moderate specificty

• cogntive, language, sensory and motor assessment and also genetic testing

what are the 6 therapeutic interventions for ASD

1) beahvioural appraoches:
2) developmental approaches;

3) naturalistic developmental beahvioural interventions:

4) TEACH;

5) CBT;

6) Group social skills intervention:

behavioural approaches

target adaptive skills, cogntiion, language and behaviour

developmental approaches

focus on social-pragmatic development through antural interactions

naturalistic developmental behavioural interventions

integrate behavioural and developmental methods in everyday settings

TEACH

emphasizes strucutral teaching tailored to individual needs

CBT

for those with anxiety

Group social skills interventions

imporves osical knowledge and aprent-rated social functioning

adults often face signficant challenges. name them

lower satisfaction wiht patient-clinician communication, reduced confidence in managing their own health care, lower rates of independent living, higher unemployment, increased mental health service use, premature mortality (2x), suicide risk (3x)