PDD NOS V Aspergers

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First I would like to thank everyone for their insight and answering my many questions!

I have posted lots of questions and have explained the difficulties getting dx for my son. I have been advocating for my son who is 13yrs for 5yrs suspecting there was problems long before that and I must admit I was hoping they would go away.

I have gone private and seem to get answers without any difficulties, the difficulties arises when I use the local services, I explained before I live in a small town and here in Ireland private consultants are limited and offer no real after services other then giving you a dx and referring you on to local services.

Huge battle with local services my son had a review today eventually they have agreed that he meets the criteria for ADHD and OCD but not for Aspergers they are suggesting PDD NOS. I have searched the internet which is quiet vague. The one thing that sticks out is speech/language delay my son never had this problem, he has difficulties in communicating and expressing himself, but his speech was not delayed.

He has been dx with Aspergers privately and after many days/nights researching, seminars and posts here I feel that this is the correct dx.

Looking for your insight again in answering my question PDD NOS V Aspergers.

Thanks in advance

PDD-NOS is for people who meet SOME of the criteria for Asperger's or autism, but don't meet all of them.

The DSM-IV's official criteria for AS is:

I'm curious about PDD-NOS too. It's said that if someone does not fit the criteria for Kanner's or Asperger's but is clearly

autistic, then a diagnosis of PDD-NOS is applicable. What I'm curious about is what is it that defines someone as clearly

autistic? Is it either significant issues with either social or behavioral or is one more indicative of autism than the other?


I know someone who has very strong interests and jiggles his leg constantly and finds sunny days overwhelming but is

quite comfortable and successful socially. According to what I read about PDD-NOS he would be diagnosed as such but

I don't see it for him because he connects with people so easily.

pdd-nos is used when there are autistic traits present, but they dont follow the pattern as required for a specific diagnosis. ideally one would look at criteria for classic autism first, and if the person doesnt fulfill the criteria, look at asperger's, and if the person doesnt fulfill those criteria, then look at pdd-nos. classic autism and asperger's require a certain number of traits from each of category. pdd-nos is more of a catch-all diagnosis if the person doesnt quite have the right number of traits in the right categories for classic autism or aspergers, yet they clearly have autistic traits from any of the three categories in the classic autism criteria.

for instance, if you look at the AS criteria scandium posts, if someone has 1 trait from section A and 3 from section B, they would not fit the criteria for AS (AS requires at least 2 from A and at least 1 from B) or classic autism but they would fit pdd-nos.

Hi Scandium

I am going to answer DSM-IV's official criteria for AS best I can, I find it difficult to understand as its written this is why I get my answers from wrong planet, but I the internet it explains it to me they way I understand.

(I)

(A) Facial Expression - my son smiles overly or looks really pissed off
Body posture doesn't look correct

(C) & (D) also fits

(II)

(A)
(B)
(C)

also fits

(III) Yes

(IV) Yes

(V) Yes

(VI) yes

^Then according to the DSM-IV he has AS.

Regarding (B) my son has friends but I always have to initiate contact!

I think (B) doesn't necessarily mean that the person does not have friends, but does not spontaneously make friends at his/her own age level.

Keep in mind that the DSM is not the only tool that is used to diagnose an ASD.


Not sure what the OP is asking really. Honestly, not being argumentative. Why do you not like the PDDNOS diagnosis versus the AS one? Not sure how we could tell if the diagnosis is correct or not. Nobody here has met your son and most do not have any professional experience.

Once you got your private diagnosis of AS, and that is what you thought it was also, why did you go to a public place for an assessment also? Was there a problem with utilizing social services with the private diagnosis?

I dont think the diagnosis would really affect your son over the other one. You get therapy for ASDs based on their needs, not on the diagnosis as those on the spectrum are so different. And they have different needs even within the same diagnosis.

Unless you like hte AS one better because you think it's more socially acceptable?

Hi LornaDoone My son has been through the mill which has been mostly telling us there is nothing wrong, past that, I am just trying to understand I don't care if Pdd nods or aspergers ADHD, OCD I just want as a parent to know how to help my child.

What happened after you got the AS diagnosis? Is that not acceptable to get services? Do you have to have your diagnosis through the government or some other organization in order to get therapy?

Hi LornaDoone

My son had a really difficult terrible year at school, to get the support of the school I need the local services. To get him therapy I need the local services to be in agreement. difference of opinion make it difficult because the school won't take it serious plus my son doesn't have behavioural issues he suffers in silence until he gets home the school doesn't think there is a problem.

My son is now refusing to go back to school!

Scandium regarding friends trying to explain, My son has friends he does not make friends per se. He is very good at sport so lots of young people know him, he doesn't have a best friend never did one that he would spend most of his time with. I have to initiate most of the contact, they will text oremail him and he doesn't bother as he doesn't know what to say.

Out of the blue and very seldom will he initiate contact, he has friends at school but doesn't really feel they are his friend he doesn't want to be a weirdo as he puts it. He feels they all don't really like him but he tries to socialise with them rather then been on his own. I feel he would prefer to be on his own. I think trying to socialise at school causes him huge amounts of stress, he is now refusing to go back to school.

So, you spent the money on the private diagnosis and you can't get therapy based on that alone eh? That stinks! Sounds very confusing and frustrating!

Annmaria, the difference is probably due to the difference in experience of the diagnosticians. Doctors with experience diagnsoing Autism can usually pinpoint the specific differences better. Some psychologists or people without the experience might interpret a high five as social reciprocity, while someone more experienced might know that is a learned response and not spontaneous reciprocity. A good diagnostician will take the time to do the ADOS or similar test which has specific exercises that flesh out whether the child is flexible in their thinking or responds in a way that is more in line with Autism. I would not be so concerned with the different diagnoses, it is clear that you, knowing your child, can impartially examine the true diagnostic criteria to see if your child fits the criteria.

Maybe in the meanwhile, as you are working with the school system, you can work him through some curriculum like the stuff developed by Michelle Garcia Winner for things like perspective taking and social thinking. In other words, don't just depend on the school system. Do others have suggestions?