Medical Comorbidities in Autism: Challenges to Diagnosis and Treatment

Ever since its original description by Leo Kanner in l943, autism has been generally defined by its clinical characteristics and core symptoms that include impaired social skills, isolated areas of interest, and delayed and disordered language. Over time, it has become apparent that autism is a hete...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neurotherapeutics 2010-07, Vol.7 (3), p.320-327
Main Author: Bauman, Margaret L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
atypical behaviors
Autism
Autistic Disorder - diagnosis
Autistic Disorder - epidemiology
Autistic Disorder - therapy
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Biomedicine
Children & youth
Comorbidity
diagnosis
Endocrine System Diseases - epidemiology
Epilepsy - epidemiology
Gastrointestinal Diseases - epidemiology
Humans
management
medical conditions
Metabolic Diseases - epidemiology
Neurobiology
Neurology
Neurosciences
Neurosurgery
Review
Review Article
Sleep Wake Disorders - epidemiology
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Summary:Ever since its original description by Leo Kanner in l943, autism has been generally defined by its clinical characteristics and core symptoms that include impaired social skills, isolated areas of interest, and delayed and disordered language. Over time, it has become apparent that autism is a heterogeneous disorder with regard to its clinical presentation, etiology, underlying neurobiology, and degree of severity. As a result, the termed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has come into common usage. With advancements in clinical care, there has come the appreciation that many ASD children, adolescents, and adults may have medically relevant disorders that may negatively impact their developmental progress and behavior, but which frequently go undetected. Many of these medical conditions are treatable, often resulting in improved developmental gains and quality of life for the patient and family. In addition, the possibility exists that some of these medical conditions may suggest the presence of important genetic and/or biologic markers, which, if identified, can refine our ability to be more precise in categorizing clinical and genetic subtypes within the autism spectrum.
ISSN:1933-7213
1878-7479
1878-7479
DOI:10.1016/j.nurt.2010.06.001