Clinical Profiles and Conversion Rates Among Young Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder Who Present to Clinical High Risk for Psychosis Services
- PMID: 30797038
- DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2018.09.446
Clinical Profiles and Conversion Rates Among Young Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder Who Present to Clinical High Risk for Psychosis Services
Abstract
Objective: The overlap versus independence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia is a topic that has garnered the attention of generations of clinicians and scientists. Although high rates of psychotic symptoms have been identified in individuals with ASD, the nature, prevalence, and prognostic significance of subclinical psychotic experiences in ASD remain poorly understood.
Method: This study sought to compare baseline characteristics, clinical profiles, and conversion outcomes between young individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR) who presented with or without a prior ASD diagnosis during the second phase of the North American Prodrome Longitudinal Study (NAPLS, N = 764).
Results: Patients with CHR and ASD (CHR/ASD+, n = 26) tended to exhibit greater social and social cognitive difficulties, but expressed relatively levels of core psychosis symptoms similar to those of to patients with CHR but no ASD (CHR/ASD-). Risk for conversion to co-occurring psychosis (18.2% CHR/ASD+ versus 16.8% CHR/ASD-) was equivalent between CHR/ASD+ and CHR/ASD- groups, and the NAPLS2 Psychosis Risk Calculator predicted conversion to psychosis equally well across groups.
Conclusion: These results suggest that baseline psychosis symptoms, predictors of risk for conversion, and ultimate conversion rates are similar in patients with CHR with and without ASD. They further suggest that ASD must not be considered a mutually exclusive diagnosis when such youth present in CHR settings. Future research is needed to better track trajectories in larger cohorts of individuals with CHR and comorbid ASD and to understand whether treatment recommendations effective in the broader CHR population are useful for this particular population as well.
Keywords: comorbidity; development; prodrome; schizophrenia; symptoms.
Copyright © 2019 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Similar articles
-
Selection for Psychosocial Treatment for Youth at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis Based on the North American Prodrome Longitudinal Study Individualized Risk CalculatorMA Worthington et al. Early Interv Psychiatry. PMID 31943807.Intensive treatments such as FFT-CHR may be most appropriate for individuals at the highest levels of clinical risk for psychosis.
-
Association of Neurocognition With Transition to Psychosis: Baseline Functioning in the Second Phase of the North American Prodrome Longitudinal StudyLJ Seidman et al. JAMA Psychiatry 73 (12), 1239-1248. PMID 27806157.Neurocognitive impairment, especially in attention and working memory abilities and declarative memory abilities, is a robust characteristic of CHR participants, especial …
-
Neuropsychology of the Prodrome to Psychosis in the NAPLS Consortium: Relationship to Family History and Conversion to PsychosisLJ Seidman et al. Arch Gen Psychiatry 67 (6), 578-88. PMID 20530007.These findings document that CHR individuals have significant neuropsychological difficulties, particularly those who later develop psychosis. This dysfunction is general …
-
[Detection and Early Treatment of Subjects at High Risk of Clinical Psychosis: Definitions and Recommendations]C Michel et al. Encephale 43 (3), 292-297. PMID 28347521. - ReviewIn children and adolescents, psychotic disorders already represent one of the leading causes of disability-adjusted life years. During the past two decades, early detecti …
-
What Is the Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder and ASD Traits in Psychosis? A Systematic ReviewDL Kincaid et al. Psychiatry Res 250, 99-105. PMID 28152400. - ReviewThere is increasing evidence to suggest both a symptomatic overlap and a clinically significant degree of co-occurrence between Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and psycho …
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
