Pervasive Developmental Disorders Group Research Articles

Prediction of childhood problems at three years in children experiencing disorders of regulation during infancy

The objective of this study was to determine if symptoms of regulatory disorder (RD) during infancy were related to clinical status at three years. Two age-matched RD groups based on severity (N = 10 in mild RD group; N = 22 in moderate–severe RD group) and an age-matched control group (N = 38) were evaluated at 7 and 30 months. A fourth group with pervasive developmental disorders (N = 18) also were tested. Problems with self-regulation, including sleep, feeding, state control, self-calming, sensory reactivity, mood regulation, and emotional and behavioral control, were documented during infancy. Children were retested at 36 months in their development, behavior, and play. Two child psychiatrists unfamiliar with the subjects' diagnostic classification during infancy provided diagnoses at 36 months. At 36 months, 60% of children with mild regulatory disorders did not meet criteria for any disorders, while 95% of infants with moderate regulatory disorders had diagnoses that fell into two diagnostic clusters: (1) delays in motor, language, and cognitive development and (2) parent–child relational problems. Most toddlers in the pervasive developmental disorder group were diagnosed as having PDD or autism with mental retardation or borderline intelligence at 36 months. Early symptoms are discussed as they relate to later diagnostic outcomes for the clinical samples. © 2000 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

An investigation into sleep characteristics of children with autism and Asperger's Disorder.

The aim of the study was to investigate the specificity of sleep problems in children with autism and further explore the currently unclear association between sleep problems and daytime behaviour. The Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) group consisted of 31 children with autism and 7 children with Asperger's Disorder ranging in age from 44 to 152 months. The control group consisted of 36 children ranging in age from 63 to 171 months. The children were matched on age and gender, and group-matched on IQ level. A sleep diary was completed by parents over a 2-week period, in addition to several behaviour questionnaires. Results showed that children in the PDD group exhibited qualitatively and quantitatively different sleep patterns to nonautistic control children. The findings were discussed in light of current literature concerning circadian rhythm dysfunction, social difficulties, and abnormal melatonin levels in children with autism.

Autism and other pervasive developmental disorders: exploring the dimensional view.

To examine empirical data on children with autistic disorder (AD), Asperger's disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) for continuities or distinguishing features between disorder and to see to what extent the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM-IV) diagnostic criteria-reflect observed data. Studies were identified in 4 ways. 1)A Medline search from 1976 to the present of articles with the key words autism, pervasive developmental disorder, autistic spectrum disorder, and Asperger; of these articles, those with mesh headings or textwords "cluster," which identified cluster analyses deriving pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) subtypes, were retained 2) The Journal of Autistic and Developmental Disorder from 1990 to the present was hand-searched to identify other empirically derived studies on diagnosis, prevalence, classification, and validity of PDD subtypes. 3) Key review articles were searched for their references. 4) The references of all identified articles were searched. Eight cluster studies were retained for their relevance to diagnostic issues, as were 7 empirically derived studies delineating clinic characteristics of children will AD, Asperger's syndrome, or PDD-NOS. Data suggests that children with PDD may fit into 1 of 2 overlapping groups, including a lower-functioning group with greater developmental compromise, social aloofness, and a greater number of autistic symptoms and a higher-functioning group with higher IQ, fewer autistic symptoms, and more prosocial behavior. The PDD subtype resemble each other and can be seen as existing o a continuum, differing only by degree of impairment. Children exhibiting the triad of autistic impairments can be seen as suffering from disorders on a PDD continuum. While the DSM-IV does identify a lower-functioning autistic group (AD), the higher-functioning group is less well served. Asperger's disorder as defined in the DSM-IV is not clearly distinguishable from AD and PDD-NOS, and the PDD-NOS subcategory is not operationalized. Further research is required to elaborate criteria for the higher-functioning PDD group, and measures related to etiology, outcome, and treatment response may help determine which diagnostic criteria can meaningfully separate one disorder from another.

Communicative, Social/Affective, and Symbolic Profiles of Young Children With Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders

Research on children with autism and pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) has identified deficits and differences in social-communicative and related symbolic abilities. This includes a limited range of communicative functions, limited ability to use conventional preverbal and verbal means of communicating, lack of pretend play, and limited use of shared positive affect and eye gaze to regulate communicative interactions. However, most previous research has studied older preschool and school-age children and has measured one aspect of social skills. This study examined developmental profiles of two groups of young children with atypical language development using the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales (CSBS; Wetherby & Prizant, 1993). One group had been diagnosed with PDD (APA, 1994) and the second group had developmental language delays where the diagnosis of PDD had been ruled out. The results indicated that CSBS profiles of the group with PDD reflected a distinct pattern of relative strengths and weaknesses that was substantially different from the other group on 15 of the 22 CSBS scales. Significant differences were found in the clusters of communicative functions, gestural communicative means, reciprocity, social/affective signaling, and symbolic behavior. The younger children in the PDD group showed results similar to the older children, with more pronounced deficits in vocal and verbal means. Correlational findings indicate three clusters of impairments involving joint attention, symbolic play, and social/affective signaling. The implications of these findings are discussed in regard to earlier identification and intervention planning.

A Comparison of Breastfeeding Rates among Children with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, and Controls

The breastfeeding rates for 50 children with pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) from North Dakota's roster of PDD patients were compared with the national average and with the rates for a control group matched for age, sex, and IQ. In addition, the breastfeeding rates for the normal siblings of the PDD and control groups were compared with the national average to help determine whether the lower breastfeeding rate among PDD patients was a function of parenting practices. The breastfeeding rates for the PDD and control groups were not significantly different from each other, but both were significantly lower than the national average. The breastfeeding rate for the normal siblings of PDD children was almost identical to the national average, but the rate for the siblings of the matched control group was significantly lower than the national average. These results are discussed in terms of hypotheses regarding the early parent-child interactions and characteristics in the families of PDD children.

Responses to contingent queries in adults with mental retardation and pervasive developmental disorders

ABSTRACTEight young adults with autism and autistic-like pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) and eight mentally retarded adults were matched for nonverbal IQ and given a series of standard language tests. They were then engaged in conversations into which examiners injected three types of contingent query requests for clarification (‘I watched “Dynasty” last night.’ “You watched what?”). Results of the standard language measures revealed that the PDD group was inferior in all areas except articulation. Responses to the contingent, query task showed the PDD group to be both less specific and less willing to supply information beyond that directly queried. Implications of these results for understanding the social and linguistic deficiencies in autism are discussed.