Relatively little has been published about the prevalence of autism in adults with psychiatric disorders. In this study, all new patients referred to an adult psychiatric outpatient clinic in Sweden between November 2019 and October 2020 (n = 562) were screened for autism spectrum disorders using the Ritvo Autism and Asperger Diagnostic Scale…

More adults are undergoing autism assessment due to recent changes in awareness, diagnostic criteria and professional practices. This scoping review aimed to summarise research on autism diagnosis in adulthood and identify any gaps for future study. The authors searched for studies involving first-time assessment and diagnosis of autism in adults,…

The prevalence of autism/autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been increasing across the world. Previous studies in Norway reported, that the prevalence rate for 0-10-year-old children is 1 in 166, and in the case of 11-year-old children it is 1 in 125. Moreover, another nationwide study discovered that 1 in 192 males and 1 in 695 females between…

Increasing rates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and younger age at diagnosis pose a challenge to preschool intervention systems. In Sweden, most young autistic children receive intervention service in community-based preschool programs, but no tool is yet available to assess the quality of the preschool learning environment. This study adapted…

The diagnostic validity of the new research algorithms of the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised and the revised algorithms of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule was examined in a clinical sample of children aged 18-47 months. Validity was determined for each instrument separately and their combination against a clinical consensus…

In society today, there is a tendency towards over-diagnosing. This tendency in society at large seems to reflect the normalization of a diagnostic culture. Some researchers have claimed that this normalization could be defined as the 'medicalization of childhood'. There would seem to be a need for a sociocultural analysis of this phenomenon in…

We identified clusters of atypical sensory functioning adults with ASC by hierarchical cluster analysis. A new scale for commonly self-reported sensory reactivity was used as a measure. In a low frequency group (n = 37), all subscale scores were relatively low, in particular atypical sensory/motor reactivity. In the intermediate group (n = 17)…

Background: Parents often recognize problems in their child's development earlier than health professionals do and there is new emphasis on the importance of involving parents in the diagnostic process. In Gothenburg, Sweden, over 100 children were identified as having an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 2009-11 through a general population…

Research on visual local and global perception in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is incomplete in young children. We investigated 35 three-year-old siblings of children with ASD, either diagnosed (n = 12) or not diagnosed (n = 23) with ASD as well as 14 controls with typical development and with no family history of ASD. Data from the local tasks…

From a purely educationist perspective, gaining a deeper understanding of several aspects related to the prevalence of autism/ASD in a given population is of great value in planning and improving educational and psychological intervention for treatment, training, and teaching of children with this disorder. In this article, I present and discuss…

Background: Sensory reactivity in people with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) has been found to differ in comparison to reactivity in people without ASC. In this study sensory experiences of high-functioning individuals with ASC were explored and described. Method: Interview data from 15 participants with a diagnosis of ASC were analysed by…

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is more common than previously believed. ASD is increasingly diagnosed at very young ages. We report estimated ASD prevalence rates from a population study of 2-year-old children conducted in 2010 in Gothenburg, Sweden. Screening for ASD had been introduced at all child health centers at child age 21/2 years. All…

This study explores the production of a counterhegemonic discourse of "autistic normalcy" among adults with high-functioning autism by analyzing notions of diagnosis. The discourse analyses are based on material from ethnographic fieldwork in a Swedish educational setting. Study participants were 3 male and 9 female adults who had been…

This study examined objective quality of life (work, academic success, living situation, relationships, support system) and subjective quality of life (Sense of Coherence and Short-Form Health Survey-36) in an adult sample of males (n = 50, mean age: 30 years) with Asperger syndrome diagnosed in childhood and followed prospectively over two…

Background: Although neurodevelopmental disorders are demarcated as discrete entities in the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of mental disorders, empirical evidence indicates that there is a high degree of overlap among them. The first aim of this investigation was to explore if a single general factor could account for the large degree of observed…