Behavioral and emotional profile and parental stress in preschool children with autism spectrum disorder

Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were shown to experience more stress than parents of typically developing peers, although little is known about risk factors predicting stress in this population. The aim of this study was to evaluate parental stress levels and behavioral and emotional problems in a sample of preschool children with ASD as compared to typically developing (TD) peers and to investigate the role of several factors, including the severity of autistic symptoms, adaptive skills, cognitive abilities and behavioral and emotional problems, on parental stress. Results confirmed that parents of children with ASD experience higher stress levels than parents of TD and that children with ASD show more behavioral and emotional problems than controls. Moreover, our results showed that behavioral and emotional problems are strong predictors of parental stress, while stress related to a parent–child dysfunctional relationship was associated with daily living and communication skills as well as cognitive abilities. Findings revealed different behavioral and emotional problems affecting parental stress in ASD and TD samples. No association between the severity of autism symptoms and parental stress was detected. These results suggest that dysfunctional behaviors in preschool children with ASD have a strong impact on parental stress, profoundly affecting the well-being of the entire family. Therefore, strategies aimed at the early detection and management of these behavioral and emotional problems are crucial in order to prevent parental stress and to develop the most appropriate treatment interventions.     

Cognitive underpinnings of pretend play in autism

This article examines the cognitive underpinnings of spontaneous and prompted pretend play in 28 young children with autism, 24 children with other developmental disorders, and 26 typical children. The article compares theories that consider either theory of mind (ToM) or executive function (EF) to be causally important deficits in the development of pretend play in autism and important factors in pretend play. Each of these two theories posits a cognitive precursor to pretense, which would need to be present in typical development, and the absence of which could explain pretend play deficits in children with developmental disabilities such as autism. We tested which of these theories better predicts a child's production of pretend play. Children with autism were significantly delayed on pretend play scores. They also had significant deficits in our ToM measure, but not our EF measures. Regression analyses suggested a role for our measure of generativity, one of the EF measures.     

Food selectivity in children with and without an autism spectrum disorder: Investigation of diagnosis and age

Feeding problems are common in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), with food selectivity being the most frequently reported. Selectivity based on type and/or texture of food is of concern in those with ASD. Variations in symptom presentation of food selectivity in children with different autism spectrum diagnoses across childhood have not often been investigated. Parent-report of food selectivity was examined in 525 children age 2–18 years diagnosed with autistic disorder, PDD-NOS, Asperger's disorder, atypical development, and typical development using information garnered from the Autism Spectrum Disorder-Comorbidity for Children (ASD-CC), a tool to assess emotional issues and comorbid psychopathology. Individuals with an ASD were reported to have significantly more food selectivity than both the atypically developing group and the typically developing group. In addition, the ASD groups, when looked at together, showed a decrease in food selectivity across childhood with significant decrease in the Asperger's disorder group.     

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms and sleep problems in preschool children: the role of autistic traits

BackgroundSleep problems are elevated in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, until now there has been comparatively little research on the role of autistic traits in this association. The current study examined the association between ADHD symptoms and sleep problems in Japanese preschool children and whether autistic traits might also be important for this relationship.MethodsData were analyzed from 1053 children (average age 64.14 months, range 58–71; 50.3% male) that were drawn from the Tama Children's Survey (TCS). Parent-reported information was obtained on ADHD symptoms using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and autistic traits with the Social Responsiveness Scale Second Edition (SRS-2). Parents also provided information on three different categories of sleep problems experienced by their children – parasomnias, sleep disordered breathing and awakening/daytime problems. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was used to examine the associations.ResultsIn analyses adjusted for sociodemographic factors, the mother's mental health and child's emotional problems, compared to children with no ADHD symptoms or autistic traits, children with only ADHD symptoms had significantly increased odds for only one of 11 individual sleep problems – waking in a negative mood. In contrast, children with comorbid ADHD symptoms and autistic traits had elevated odds for five sleep problems with odds ratios ranging from 2.10 (takes time to become alert in the morning) to 3.46 (excessive body movement while sleeping).ConclusionsSleep problems may be especially elevated in children with comorbid ADHD symptoms and autistic traits.     

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in adult psychiatry. A 20-year register study

Abstract

Nylander L, Holmqvist M, Gustafson L, Gillberg C. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in adult psychiatry. A 20-year register study. Nord J Psychiatry 2012;Early Online:1–7 Objective: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are increasingly recognized in adults. This study aimed to assess trends in diagnostic practice, diagnostic delay and comorbidity regarding ADHD and ASD in adult psychiatric patients. Methods: Individuals with diagnosed ADHD or ASD were identified in an adult psychiatry register comprising 56,462 patients. Results: ADHD was diagnosed in up to 2.7% and ASD in 1.3% of the patients. Most cases were diagnosed within 2 years of first contact with adult psychiatry, but some patients were treated for 10 years or more before being diagnosed with ADHD or ASD. Seventy per cent of ADHD and 56% of ASD patients were treated as outpatients only. Other psychiatric diagnoses were registered in about 60%. Affective disorders were common in patients with ADHD. Psychoses and intellectual disability were more common in ASD patients. Psychoactive substance use-related disorders were considerably more common in those with ADHD. Concomitant ADHD and ASD were seldom diagnosed in this clinical material. Conclusion: ADHD and ASD were probably much underdiagnosed in the studied group of psychiatric patients. Other psychiatric diagnoses were common, but not ADHD with concomitant ASD.     

Parent-reported problematic sleep behaviors in children with comorbid autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

BackgroundSleep problems are frequent and well documented in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and children with internalizing problems, however limited work has examined sleep problems in children presenting with comorbid ASD/ADHD. In healthy children, sleep problems negatively impact social, emotional, and academic functioning. The current study sought to examine diagnostic severity as predictors of sleep problems in children with comorbid ASD/ADHD. Additionally, the association between sleep and “real-life” functional domains (i.e., intellectual functioning, academic achievement, and executive functioning) were assessed.MethodSleep, internalizing difficulties, intellectual functioning, academic achievement and executive functioning were assessed in 85 children with who carried the dual diagnoses of ASD and ADHD.ResultsInternalizing difficulties, rather than ASD or ADHD symptom severity, was the most consistent predictor of problematic sleep behaviors (i.e., nightmares overtiredness, sleeping less than other children, trouble sleeping, and Total Problematic Sleep Behaviors) in this sample. Further, parent report of problematic sleep behaviors was significantly associated with functional domains after controlling for ASD, ADHD, and internalizing symptoms.ConclusionsResults suggest that internalizing symptoms are associated with problematic sleep behaviors in children with comorbid ASD/ADHD and may have implications for the “real-life” functioning among children with comorbid ASD/ADHD.     

Atypical understanding of mental terms in Chinese-speaking children with autism spectrum disorder

The present study investigated how Chinese children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) understand mental terms, especially their knowledge of verb factivity. We examined these children's ability to understand mental terms representing true belief (i.e., zhi1dao4, know) and false belief (i.e., yi3wei2, thought) and compared their ability with that of typically developing (TD) children matched with age, and TD children matched with verbal mental age (VMA). Children were asked to participate in a game to find a toy according to the experimenter's testimony, which involved these mental terms. Results showed that all children from these three groups understood zhi1dao4 better than yi3wei2. Particularly, children with ASD performed statistically significantly worse in understanding mental terms than their age-matched TD children, but not differently from VMA-matched TD children. The understanding of mental verbs was correlated with the language ability of children with ASD, and with age, language ability and executive function of TD children. After controlling for the effects of age, general language ability, and executive functions, the group difference of mental verb understanding still existed.     

Comparing social skill profiles of children with autism spectrum disorders versus children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: Where the deficits lie

Marked socialization impairment is evident in both individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and individuals with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The current study utilizes the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Youngsters-II (MESSY-II) to explore similarities and discrepancies in the social skill profiles of children with ASD and children with ADHD ages 6–9 years old and 10–16 years old. Children with ASD and children with ADHD were both found to be significantly deficient in social skills compared to atypically developing peers without an Axis I or Axis II diagnosis; however, specific skill deficits vary between the groups. In particular, children with ASD exhibited a lack of adaptive social skills whereas children with ADHD demonstrated social skill knowledge but an increased level of maladaptive social behavior. The trends of socialization impairment over time were also found to differ in children with ASD versus children with ADHD. While children with ASD remained at similar levels of adaptive social skill impairment over age groups, children with ADHD were found to become more socially impaired in more areas over time. The distinct patterns and trends of social skill deficit found in children with ASD and children with ADHD can inform treatments targeted toward the specific deficits observed within each disorder.     

Cognitive control in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

The objective of the present study was to investigate the ability of adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) to direct their attention and exert cognitive control in a forced instruction dichotic listening (DL) task. The performance of 29 adults with ADHD was compared with 58 matched controls from the Bergen Dichotic Listening Database (N > 1500). Participants in the Bergen DL task listen to and report from conflicting consonant-vowel combinations (two different syllables presented simultaneously, one to each ear). They are asked to report the syllable they hear (non-forced condition), or to focus and report either the right- or left-ear syllable (forced-right and forced-left condition). This procedure is presumed to tap distinct cognitive processes: perception (non-forced condition), orienting of attention (forced-right condition), and cognitive control (forced-left condition). Adults with ADHD did not show significant impairment in the conditions tapping perception and attention orientation, but were significantly impaired in their ability to report the left-ear syllable during the forced-left instruction condition, whereas the control group showed the expected left-ear advantage in this condition. This supports the hypothesis of a deficit in cognitive control in the ADHD group, presumably mediated by a deficit in a prefrontal neuronal circuitry. Our results may have implications for psychosocial adjustment for persons with ADHD in educational and work environments.     

Everyday expressions of pain in children with and without autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundAnecdotal reports from parents suggest that their children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may have diminished pain experiences and expressions. In contrast, objective measures of pain have been used to document typical and enhanced expressions of pain in response to noxious stimuli (e.g., blood draw) among children with autism. The purpose of this study was to compare non-biased parental ratings of pain among children with and without ASD.MethodAs an everyday measure of pain, parents completed The Non-Communicating Children’s Pain Checklist (NCCPC-R) across two time windows (i.e., 2 h and 1 week) for 31 children with ASD and 19 children without ASD.ResultsThere were no significant group differences in everyday expressions of pain between children with and without ASD. However, in general, increased autism symptomology severity was associated with decreased parental ratings of pain expressions.ConclusionThese results continue to support a framework where children with ASD may have typical pain sensitivity, however, their expressions of pain may differ based on where individuals lie on the autism spectrum.     

Internet addiction and attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder symptoms in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

AimSeveral studies have reported that internet addiction (IA) is more prevalent in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, the characteristics of ASD adolescents with IA are unclear. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of IA in ASD adolescents, and compare the characteristics between the IA and the non-IA groups in adolescents with ASD.MethodsThe study included 55 participants who were outpatients at Ehime University Hospital and Ehime Rehabilitation Center for Children in Japan, aged 10–19 years, diagnosed with ASD. Patients and their parents answered several questionnaires including the Young's Internet Addiction Test (IAT), Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ), and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale-IV (ADHD-RS).ResultsBased on the total IAT score, 25 out of 55 participants were classified as having IA. Although there were no significant differences in AQ and Intelligence Quotient, the higher scores of ADHD symptoms in SDQ and ADHD-RS were observed in the IA group than the non-IA group. The IA group used portable games more often than the non-IA group.ConclusionThe ADHD symptoms were strongly associated with IA in ASD adolescents. More intensive prevention and intervention for IA are needed especially for the ASD adolescents with ADHD symptoms.     

Emotional and behavioural problems in children and young people with autism spectrum disorder in specialist autism schools

We investigated emotional and behavioural problems in a sample (N = 615) of children and young people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), most of whom also had intellectual disability (ID), attending specialist autism schools. High rates of parent- and teacher-reported problems were recorded. Teacher-reported levels of hyperactivity were higher in younger children. Teacher- but not parent-reported levels of conduct problems and hyperactivity were highest in children without phrase speech. Greater use of mental health services was associated with higher levels of emotional and behavioural problems, but only a minority of participants had accessed mental health services in the previous 6 months.     

Internal state language in the storybook narratives of children with and without autism spectrum disorder: Investigating relations to theory of mind abilities

The current study examines narratives elicited using a wordless picture book, focusing on language used to describe the characters’ thoughts and emotions (i.e., internal state language, ISL). The sample includes 21 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 24 typically developing controls, matched on children's gender, IQ, as well as receptive and expressive vocabulary. This research had three major findings. First, despite equivalent performance on standardized language assessments, the volume of children's narratives (i.e., the number of utterances and words, the range of unique verbs and adjectives) was lower in children with ASD than in typically developing controls. Second, after controlling for narrative volume, the narratives of children with ASD were less likely to reference the characters’ emotions than was the case for typically developing controls. Finally, our results revealed a specific association between children's use of emotion terms and their performance on a battery of experimental tasks evaluating children's Theory of Mind abilities. Implications for our understanding of narrative deficits in ASD as well as interventions that use narrative as a context for improving social comprehension are discussed.     

以VB-MAPP为基础的家庭密集行为干预对孤独症谱系障碍患儿语言能力的影响

背景 家庭干预是对孤独症谱系障碍（ASD）患儿进行干预的重要组成部分,既往关于以家庭为主导的密集行为干预对ASD患儿语言能力影响的研究不足。目的 研究以语言行为里程碑评估及安置程序（VB-MAPP）为基础的家庭密集行为干预对ASD患儿语言能力的影响,为制定ASD患儿的家庭干预策略提供参考。方法 选取2020年9月-2021年12月在汕头大学医学院第二附属医院儿童康复科就诊、符合《精神障碍诊断与统计手册（第5版）》（DSM-5）ASD诊断标准的2~3岁患儿为研究对象。采用同期非随机对照试验,将ASD患儿分为研究组（n=24）和对照组（n=14）,研究组接受以VB-MAPP为基础的家庭密集行为干预,对照组接受其他特殊机构或早教机构培训,两组干预均持续6个月。干预前后,对两组患儿进行VB-MAPP里程碑评估,选取VB-MAPP里程碑总评分、提要求、命名和听者反应作为研究指标。比较两组干预效果的差异,采用多元线性回归考查干预效果的影响因素。结果 干预后,研究组VB-MAPP里程碑总评分、提要求、命名和听者反应评分均高于对照组,差异均有统计学意义（Z=-4.339~-2.195,P<0.05或0.01）。多元线性回归分析结果显示,前三个月平均每周家庭训练时长对听者反应能力有影响（β=1.029,P<0.05）。结论 以VB-MAPP为基础的早期家庭密集行为干预可能有助于ASD患儿提要求、命名、听者反应等语言能力的改善。     

Relationship of autistic traits between parents and children with and without autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundAlthough parents with a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have usually been identified as having the “broader autism phenotype”, empirical research on the differences in autistic-like characteristics between parents with and without ASD children has yielded inconsistent results.MethodThis survey of the autistic traits of parents and children was conducted in 119 parents with ASD children and 108 parents with typically developing (TD) children. Parents’ autistic traits were quantified using the Autism-Spectrum Quotient and children’s autistic traits were quantified using the Autism Spectrum Quotient—Children’s Version.ResultsThe autistic traits of ASD children were significantly higher than those of the TD children; however, autistic traits were similar between parents in the two groups. Furthermore, the correlations of autistic traits between parents and children were only significant for the TD group and not for the ASD group.ConclusionsThe current findings indicate that the relationship of autistic traits between parents and children exists in the TD group, and that the Autism-Spectrum Quotient may be used for parents as a screening aid to identify children who should be further screened for autistic traits.     

Sleep problems in children with autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and epilepsy

This study aimed to examine sleep problems in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and epilepsy in clinical settings. We assessed 64 children with ASD, 64 with ADHD, 64 with epilepsy, and 64 typically developing children without any neuropsychiatric disorders by using a sex-and age-matched case-control study design. The parents reported their children's sleep problems. Parents of children with ASD and ADHD reported more current and lifetime sleep problems of their children than parents of children with epilepsy, especially in snoring and restless legs syndrome. Current or lifetime sleep problems did not differ between children with ASD and children with ADHD, or between children with epilepsy and typically developing children. Demographic characteristics and medication status could not fully explain the increased risk of sleep problems in children with ASD and ADHD. Our findings lend evidence to support more sleep problems in children with ASD and ADHD than typically developing children. Our study adds that children with epilepsy do not. These findings emphasize the importance to assess sleep problems in children with neurodevelopmental disorders highly comorbid with ASD or ADHD in clinical practice.     

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) in autism spectrum disorder

The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the research on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Topics explored are the prevalence of AD/HD, the importance of studying AD/HD, as well as the questionnaire measures used to measure AD/HD in individuals with ASD. Research on the relationship between AD/HD in ASD and parental stress and psychological distress, developmental regression, language and communication, adaptive behavior, social skills, autism severity, challenging behavior, comorbid psychopathology, gastrointestinal symptoms, sleep problems, epilepsy, sensory issues, motor difficulties, and quality of life are also discussed. Research on cardiac reactivity and executive functioning are also explored. Finally, recommendations for treatment are given as well as areas where future research is needed.     

Psychometric properties of the French Version of the Social Responsiveness Scale in autism spectrum disorder with or without attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

ObjectivesThe Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) is an instrument that is commonly used to screen for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) frequently occurs with ASD and both disorders share some phenotypic similarities. In the present study, we aimed to determine the psychometric properties of the French version of the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) and its 5 subscales (social awareness, social cognition, social communication, social motivation, and autistic mannerisms) to discriminate between children with ADHD and those with ASD (differential diagnosis) and children with ADHD from those with a dual diagnosis of ADHD and ASD (comorbid diagnosis).MethodSRS total scores and the 5 subscores of the SRS were compared between 4 groups of children: ADHD (n = 32), ASD + ADHD (n = 30), ASD (n = 31) and typical neurodevelopment (TD; n = 30) children. The discriminant validity was estimated using the Area Under the ROC Curves (AUC).ResultsSRS Social cognition (AUC = 0.73) and Autistic mannerisms (AUC = 0.70) subscores were the most discriminating for differential diagnosis of ASD and ADHD. SRS total scores (AUC = 0.70), and Social communication (AUC = 0.66) and Autistic mannerisms (AUC = 0.75) subscores were the most discriminating for comorbid diagnosis of ASD among ADHD children.ConclusionThe SRS autistic mannerisms subscore was found to be clinically relevant for both differential diagnosis of ASD and ADHD and comorbid diagnoses of ASD among ADHD children but with a modest discriminant power.     

Catechol-O-methyltransferase Val158Met polymorphism and hyperactivity symptoms in Egyptian children with autism spectrum disorder

Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) plays an important role in the catabolism of brain dopamine and norepinephrine, which have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as well as in other neuropsychatric disorders. We aimed to investigate the association of COMT Val158Met gene polymorphism with ASD and to examine the influence of such genotypes on hyperactivity symptoms in ASD patients. Eighty ASD patients (mean age 9 ± 1.9 years) and 100 control children (mean age 8.9 ± 1.9 years) were examined. COMT Val58Met polymorphism was genotyped using Tetra-primer ARMS-PCR method. The clinical diagnosis of ASD and ADHD were confirmed according to the DSM-IV criteria for research. We found no significant difference in genotypes or alleles’ frequencies of COMT Val158Met polymorphism between ASD patients and control group. There was a significant association between COMT (Val/Val) genotype and both increasing CARS (p = 0.001) and hyperactivity scores (p = 0.006). Regarding Conner's Score, the DSM-IV hyperactive impulsive were significantly higher in Val/Val genotype than both Met/Val and Met/Met genotypes (p = 0.03). Our data suggested an association between COMT Val58Met polymorphism and hyperactivity symptoms in Egyptian children with ASD.