Autism spectrum disorders among adolescents and adults and comparison with schizophrenia

Year 2019, Volume: 5 Issue: 6, 962 - 968, 04.11.2019

Aylin Küçük , Fulya Maner Mehmet Emin Ceylan

https://doi.org/10.18621/eurj.441214

Cited By: 1

Abstract

Objectives: Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) may
be commonly misdiagnosed as schizophrenia due to common symptoms and
accompanying psychotic manifestations in both adolescence and adulthood. The
purpose of this study is to examine and compare the autistic symptoms and
positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia in cases diagnosed as Autism
Spectrum Disorder.

Methods: Twenty-one patients between ages of
16-36 who have admitted to outpatient clinic have previously been diagnosed as
autism spectrum disorders (autistic disorder, Asperger Syndrome, pervasive
development disorder not otherwise specified) according to DSM-IV diagnosis
criteria, have an IQ of 50 or above, have been included in the study. Control
group have been composed of 21 patients between ages of 21-39 who have been
diagnosed as schizophrenia according to DSM-IV diagnosis criteria and have an
IQ of 50 or above. Psychiatric assessment has been made with Childhood Autism
Rating Scale (CARS), Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS),
Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), SCID-I and WAIS.

Results: The negative symptoms of ASD are
found to be higher than schizophrenia cases where as the positive symptoms of
schizophrenia cases are found to be higher than ASD cases. Twenty percent (n =
4) of OSB cases do not meet autism symptoms while none of the schizophrenia
cases meet autism symptoms. In one case of the ASD group, additional
schizophrenia diagnosis was present.

Conclusions:
In this study, it has been found
that negative symptoms of schizophrenia are widely observed in adolescent and adult
patients followed with ASD diagnosis. Consequently, autism spectrum disorders
are manifested common symptoms with schizophrenia in adolescence and adulthood. 

Keywords

Autism spectrum disorders, shizophrenia, symptom

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