Clinical evidence that Asperger's disorder is a mild form of autism.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study is to obtain clinical evidence to test the hypothesis that Asperger's disorder (AD) is a mild form of autism (AU).


METHODS
A 78-item Likert scale (the RAADS) was administered to 25 adults with AD and 19 with AU (ages, 18-65 years) to assess presence, type, and duration of symptoms.


RESULTS
The following results were found: (a) subjects with AD and AU have similar symptoms throughout adulthood (responses to 72 of 78 questions were not significantly different); (b) subjects with AD had a significantly fewer total number of symptoms; (c) subjects with AD reported nonsignificantly fewer symptoms in the DSM-IV-TR domains of social interaction and repetitive patterns of behavior; and (d) subjects with AD had significantly fewer symptoms in the communication domain.


CONCLUSIONS
The data support the hypothesis that AD is a mild form of AU, and that they share a common etiology and developmental neuropathology. It appears warranted in future diagnostic manuals to incorporate AU and AD into 1 diagnostic category such as, "Autism Spectrum Disorder, (with modifiers, severe, moderate, mild, atypical, and Asperger's type)."
Ariella Ritvo
Riva
R
Yale University School of Medicine, Yale Child Study Center, New Haven, CT 06520, USA. ariella.ritvo@yale.edu
Ritvo
Edward R
ER
Guthrie
Donald
D
Ritvo
Max J
MJ
D000328:Adult; D020817:Asperger Syndrome / Q000523:psychology*; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D001519:Behavior; D003142:Communication; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales