The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors
High rates of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and anxiety symptoms have been documented in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and have been associated with social and adaptive impairments. The study examined the frequency of clinically elevated ADHD and anxiety symptoms in an ASD group...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2018-12-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychiatry |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00717/full |
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| author | Einat Avni Esther Ben-Itzchak Ditza A. Zachor Ditza A. Zachor |
| author_facet | Einat Avni Esther Ben-Itzchak Ditza A. Zachor Ditza A. Zachor |
| author_sort | Einat Avni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | High rates of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and anxiety symptoms have been documented in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and have been associated with social and adaptive impairments. The study examined the frequency of clinically elevated ADHD and anxiety symptoms in an ASD group in comparison to a non-clinical group, compared the clinical presentation in the ASD group with and without ADHD and anxiety, assessed which child and familial variables add to the severity of Inattention, Hyperactivity/Impulsivity (HI), and anxiety symptoms, and evaluated whether having clinically elevated ADHD and/or anxiety symptoms adds to the prediction of adaptive functioning in ASD. The study included 260 participants diagnosed with ASD (mean age: 7.5 ± 1.1), using standardized tests. The rate of clinically elevated ADHD and anxiety symptoms in ASD was 62.7 and 44.6%, respectively, and symptom severity was significantly greater than the non-clinical sample. The entire population was divided into four subgroups: ASD alone, ASD+ADHD, ASD+anxiety, ASD+ADHD+anxiety, based on the parental behavioral questionnaire. The ASD alone group showed less severe autism symptoms in comparison to the other groups. Having ASD+ADHD symptoms was associated with greater impairments in socialization adaptive skills. Only the group with ASD+ADHD+anxiety was associated with poorer daily living adaptive skills. Regression analyses for prediction of ADHD and anxiety symptoms revealed that being a female and having lower adaptive skills scores predicted higher Inattention severity; being older, having better cognition, and more severe Restrictive Repetitive Behavior symptoms predicted more severe HI symptoms; being older and having more severe social impairments predicted higher anxiety scores. A regression analysis for the prediction of adaptive skills revealed that in addition to cognition and autism severity, the severity of Inattention symptoms added to the prediction of overall adaptive skills. In light of these findings, clinicians should diagnose these comorbidities in ASD early on, and provide effective interventions to reduce their negative impact on functioning, thereby improving outcome. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:28:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3c89a3f7670a497b85b21ff1eb4ce20f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-0640 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:28:55Z |
| publishDate | 2018-12-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj.art-3c89a3f7670a497b85b21ff1eb4ce20f2022-12-22T03:16:05ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychiatry1664-06402018-12-01910.3389/fpsyt.2018.00717412887The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and PredictorsEinat Avni0Esther Ben-Itzchak1Ditza A. Zachor2Ditza A. Zachor3The Autism Center, Department of Pediatrics, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Tel Aviv, IsraelBruckner Center for Research in Autism Spectrum Disorder, Communication Disorder Department, Ariel University, Ariel, IsraelThe Autism Center, Department of Pediatrics, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Tel Aviv, IsraelDepartment of Pediatrics, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, IsraelHigh rates of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and anxiety symptoms have been documented in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and have been associated with social and adaptive impairments. The study examined the frequency of clinically elevated ADHD and anxiety symptoms in an ASD group in comparison to a non-clinical group, compared the clinical presentation in the ASD group with and without ADHD and anxiety, assessed which child and familial variables add to the severity of Inattention, Hyperactivity/Impulsivity (HI), and anxiety symptoms, and evaluated whether having clinically elevated ADHD and/or anxiety symptoms adds to the prediction of adaptive functioning in ASD. The study included 260 participants diagnosed with ASD (mean age: 7.5 ± 1.1), using standardized tests. The rate of clinically elevated ADHD and anxiety symptoms in ASD was 62.7 and 44.6%, respectively, and symptom severity was significantly greater than the non-clinical sample. The entire population was divided into four subgroups: ASD alone, ASD+ADHD, ASD+anxiety, ASD+ADHD+anxiety, based on the parental behavioral questionnaire. The ASD alone group showed less severe autism symptoms in comparison to the other groups. Having ASD+ADHD symptoms was associated with greater impairments in socialization adaptive skills. Only the group with ASD+ADHD+anxiety was associated with poorer daily living adaptive skills. Regression analyses for prediction of ADHD and anxiety symptoms revealed that being a female and having lower adaptive skills scores predicted higher Inattention severity; being older, having better cognition, and more severe Restrictive Repetitive Behavior symptoms predicted more severe HI symptoms; being older and having more severe social impairments predicted higher anxiety scores. A regression analysis for the prediction of adaptive skills revealed that in addition to cognition and autism severity, the severity of Inattention symptoms added to the prediction of overall adaptive skills. In light of these findings, clinicians should diagnose these comorbidities in ASD early on, and provide effective interventions to reduce their negative impact on functioning, thereby improving outcome.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00717/fullautism (ASD)ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder)anxietyautism severityadaptive skillscognitive abilities |
| spellingShingle | Einat Avni Esther Ben-Itzchak Ditza A. Zachor Ditza A. Zachor The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors Frontiers in Psychiatry autism (ASD) ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder) anxiety autism severity adaptive skills cognitive abilities |
| title | The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors |
| title_full | The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors |
| title_fullStr | The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors |
| title_short | The Presence of Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Presentation and Predictors |
| title_sort | presence of comorbid adhd and anxiety symptoms in autism spectrum disorder clinical presentation and predictors |
| topic | autism (ASD) ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder) anxiety autism severity adaptive skills cognitive abilities |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00717/full |
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