Whats the difference between AS and NVD???

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Non Verbal Disorder and Asperger's seem to have identical symptoms. They both are neurological and share all the other major charactoristics.
My nephew was diagnosed with NVD recently back East. I just talked to a Psychiatrist who has never heard of NVD. Does anyone else out there know of Non Verbal Disorder and how it compares to Asperger's? I asked the PhD man how he would diagnose me with something I may have if he doesn't know about it. He said that he would research it.

My friend from Germany has pointed out that Asperger's has been recognized since the early 1950's. Her grandchild has been diagnosed with Asperger's years ago and gets proper support from the schools and at home. What's wrong with our Country that we don't even have it in the DSM IV manual till fifty years after Asperger discovered this disability? Makes me want to move to Europe.

Sorry for the sidelight.
Cheers,
Philski

Closer to PDD-NOS. AS without the "special interests." It is not on the spectrum and carries fewer negative connotations. It is also popular with school psychologists because it isn't a covered disability by IDEA. AS is in the DSM-IV. Get a 2nd opinion because NVLD is not really a distinct disorder from PDD-NOS.

I was originally assessed as NVLD with ADHD in 2005, and was told that I didn't have Aspergers because I "presented too well." I was told that most people with AS were male and weren't "self-aware" enough to bring themselves in for an evaluation. Since I was "bright and engaging," I couldn't have AS. A year later, I asked my marriage counselor, who has treated AS patients for years, to read the 12 pages of typed notes I'd compiled regarding my lifelong (going back to age 3) neurological, cognitive and communication quirks. She read them and said "this is AS." She said that because of how far I've "progressed" since my teens (I'm 41), she understood how the original provider misdiagnosed me. Kind of ironic, but at least now I have validation, and my husband and family finally understand me.

Hans Asperger was Austrian and published during WWII. His works didn't get translated or exported into English until the very early 80's. I can't remember her name but it was a particular British (scientist?) that published and promoted Asperger's work.

Thanks for the very helpful info. Don't know that I have Asperger's then. I collected coins as a child and stamps as an adult. This is what I found on PDD. I'm going to get a diagnosis. Even though I'm 47, its time to find out what has made me tick. Finding out that I have either AS, PDD-NOS, or NVLD won't alter my life all that much, but will assist my 15 year old daughter if, as it appears, she may also be diagnosed. Stands to reason that if what I have is hereditary, she could have it also as she does exibit alot of the symptoms.

Below is what I found on PDD-NOS:

Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS) is a 'subthreshold' condition in which some - but not all - features of autism or another explicitly identified Pervasive Developmental Disorder are identified. PDD-NOS is often incorrectly referred to as simply "PDD." The term PDD refers to the class of conditions to which autism belongs. PDD is NOT itself a diagnosis, while PDD-NOS IS a diagnosis. The term Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS; also referred to as "atypical personality development," "atypical PDD," or "atypical autism") is included in DSM-IV to encompass cases where there is marked impairment of social interaction, communication, and/or stereotyped behavior patterns or interest, but when full features for autism or another explicitly defined PDD are not met.

It should be emphasized that this ''subthreshold'' category is thus defined implicitly, that is, no specific guidelines for diagnosis are provided. While deficits in peer relations and unusual sensitivities are typically noted, social skills are less impaired than in classical autism. The lack of definition(s) for this relatively heterogeneous group of children presents problems for research on this condition. The limited available evidence suggest that children with PDD-NOS probably come to professional attention rather later than is the case with autistic children, and that intellectual deficits are less common.

I really don't see a difference really (and this is something I've given a lot of thought to)... honestly I think it's the same disorder with two different names, approached from two different camps.... one, learning disorders, the other, autism.

I struggle with the distinction also. My take is that NVLD is like asperger's without the restricted interests and less severe social impairment but including a math learning disability and more severe dyspraxia. This is more how my kid presents but he has a dx of AS.

It's going to take forever for the experts to sort it all out. Asperger's is a dx in the shrink bible but NVLD is not, so in order to get school accomodations, they dx AS or PDD-NOS.

KimJ - I think you were referring to Uta Frith. Or was it Lorna Wing?

I think the distinction between AS and NVLD may lie in the degree of social impairment due to communication problems and restricted interests.

I think it was Dr. Lorna Wing.
I think a lot of the confusion with the terms comes with the general anarchistic approach to autism. I mean it's been known about for nearly 60 years but research has been so stymied that most mainstream information is outdated, unfounded or misinterpreted. just 5 years ago, they were handing out really outdated information packets to me-I knew they were wrong. At the same time, we were offered experimental drugs (mainstream drugs for off-label use) at several different junctures.