Geurts, H.M.

Lever, A.G.

English

Although psychiatric problems are less prevalent in old age within the general population, it is largely unknown whether this extends to individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). We examined psychiatric symptoms and disorders in young, middle-aged, and older adults with and without ASD (Nmax = 344, age 19-79 years, IQ &gt; 80). Albeit comparable to other psychiatric patients, levels of symptoms and psychological distress were high over the adult lifespan; 79 % met criteria for a psychiatric disorder at least once in their lives. Depression and anxiety were most common. However, older adults less often met criteria for any psychiatric diagnosis and, specifically, social phobia than younger adults. Hence, despite marked psychological distress, psychiatric problems are also less prevalent in older aged individuals with ASD

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Supplementary materialLever, A. G., & Geurts, H. M. (20152016). Psychiatric co-occurring symptoms and disorders in young, middle-aged, and older adults with autism spectrum disorder. Submitted to Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Corresponding author:Anne G. Lever, Msc, Dutch Autism & ADHD Research Center , Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Achtergracht 129BWeesperplein 4, 1018 WT1018 XA Amsterdam, The Netherlands, e: A.G.Lever@uva.nl, p: +31 20 525 6887, f: +31 20 639 1656.Table 1. Lifetime rates of substance-related, eating, and somatoform DSM-IV disorders in young, middle-aged, and older adults with and without ASD.	ASD					COM						All ages	Young 	Middle	Older		All ages	Young	Middle	Older		ASD vs COM	N	%	N	%	N	%	N	%	Fisher’s χ2	N	%	N	%	N	%	N	%	Fisher’s χ2	χ2Substance-related disorders	22	15.9	9	19.6	5	10.6	8	17.8	1.60	43	25.3	20	33.3	9	19.6	14	21.9	3.10	4.00*Alcohol abuse	19	13.8	7	15.2	5	10.6	7	15.6	4.66	41	24.1	19	31.7	9	19.6	13	20.3	4.28	8.31*Alcohol dependence	7	5.1	1	2.2	4	8.5	2	4.4	1.82	7	4.1	4	6.7	0	-	3	4.7	2.97	0.16Drugs abuse	6	4.3	4	8.7	1	2.1	1	2.2	5.07	11	6.5	10	16.7	0	-	1	1.6	18.13***	4.07Drugs dependence	4	2.9	3	6.5	1	2.1	0	-	2.93	7	4.1	7	11.7	0	-	0	-	12.81***	1.16Eating disorders	8	5.8	4	8.7	3	6.4	1	2.2	1.79	1	0.6	1	1.7	0	-	0	-	1.74	7.29*Anorexia nervosa	5	3.6	3	6.5	2	4.3	0	-	4.69	0	-	0	-	0	-	0	-	-	6.29*Bulimia nervosa	3	2.2	1	2.2	1	2.1	1	2.2	2.27	1	0.6	1	1.7	0	-	0	-	1.74	2.75Somatoform disorders	8	5.8	6	13.0	2	4.3	0	-	6.72*	3	1.8	0	-	1	2.2	2	3.1	1.81	3.60+Somatization	4	2.9	4	8.7	0	-	0	-	7.83**	0	-	0	-	0	-	0	-	-	6.26*Pain disorder	3	2.2	1	2.2	2	4.3	0	-	3.61	3	1.8	0	-	1	2.2	2	3.1	1.81	1.31Hypochondriasis	1	0.7	1	2.2	0	-	0	-	3.55	0	-	0	-	0	-	0	-	-	2.48BDD	1	0.7	1	0.9	0	-	0	-	3.69	0	-	0	-	0	-	0	-	-	2.48Note. ASD = autism spectrum disorder; COM = comparison group; BDD = body dysmorphic disorder. +p<.1, *p≤.05, **p≤.01, ***p≤.001

Psychiatric Co-occurring Symptoms and Disorders in Young, Middle-Aged, and Older Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Psychiatric Co-occurring Symptoms and Disorders in Young, Middle-Aged, and Older Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

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International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion online publications