Parents of children with Asperger syndrome can typically trace differences in their children's development to as early as 30 months of age. and the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ; with versions for children, adolescents and adults). None have been shown to reliably differentiate between AS and other ASDs. and by Gillberg and Gillberg.
Diagnosis is most commonly made between the ages of four and eleven. Delayed or mistaken diagnosis can be traumatic for individuals and families; for example, misdiagnosis can lead to medications that worsen behavior. adult diagnosis requires painstaking clinical examination and thorough medical history gained from both the individual and other people who know the person, focusing on childhood behavior. Conditions that must be considered in a differential diagnosis include other ASDs, the schizophrenia spectrum, ADHD, obsessive compulsive disorder, major depressive disorder, semantic pragmatic disorder, nonverbal learning disorder, Tourette syndrome,
Underdiagnosis and overdiagnosis are problems in marginal cases. The cost of screening and diagnosis and the challenge of obtaining payment can inhibit or delay diagnosis. Conversely, the increasing popularity of drug treatment options and the expansion of benefits has motivated providers to overdiagnose ASD. There are indications AS has been diagnosed more frequently in recent years, partly as a residual diagnosis for children of normal intelligence who do not have autism but have social difficulties. There are questions about the external validity of the AS diagnosis. That is, it is unclear whether there is a practical benefit in distinguishing AS from HFA and from PDD-NOS; the same child can receive different diagnoses depending on the screening tool.
Further Reading
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