Srpski arhiv za celokupno lekarstvo 2012 Volume 140, Issue 3-4, Pages: 236-243
https://doi.org/10.2298/SARH1204236S
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Autism and autistic spectrum disorders in the context of new DSM-V classification, and clinical and epidemiological data
Stanković Miodrag (Klinika za zaštitu mentalnog zdravlja, Niš)
Lakić Aneta (Klinika za neurologiju i psihijatriju za decu i omladinu, Beograd)
Ilić Neda (Klinika za zaštitu mentalnog zdravlja, Niš)
Autism is one of disorders from the autism spectrum, besides Asperger
syndrome, atypical autism and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise
specified. They are classified as mental disorders as being manifested by a
wide range of cognitive, emotional and neurobehavioural abnormalities. Key
categorical characteristics of the disorder are clear impairments of the
development of the child’s socialisation, understanding and production of
verbal and non-verbal communication and restricted and repetitive patterns of
behaviour. Demarcation boundaries are not clear, neither within the very
group of the disorders from the autistic spectrum, nor with respect to the
autistic behavioural features in the general population. For this reason, the
term spectrum points out the significance of the dimensional assessment of
autistic disorders, which will most likely be the basis of the new diagnostic
classification of the disorders belonging to the current group of pervasive
developmental disorders in the new DSM-V classification. The understanding,
as well as the prevalence of the autistic spectrum disorders has changed
drastically in the last four decades. From the previous 4 per 10,000 people,
today’s prevalence estimates range from 0.6 to around 1%, and the increase of
prevalence cannot be explained solely by better recognition on the part of
experts and parents or by wider diagnostic criteria. The general conclusion
is that the autistic spectrum disorders are no longer rare conditions and
that the approach aimed at acknowledging the warning that this is an urgent
public health problem is completely justified.
Keywords: autism, autistic spectrum disorders, DSM-V classification, epidemiological data