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A longitudinal study of autism spectrum disorders in individuals diagnosed with a developmental language disorder as children
Author(s) -
Mouridsen S. E.,
Hauschild KM.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
child: care, health and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.832
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1365-2214
pISSN - 0305-1862
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2214.2009.00954.x
Subject(s) - autism spectrum disorder , danish , confidence interval , pediatrics , autism , odds ratio , population , longitudinal study , psychology , medicine , psychiatry , clinical psychology , pathology , linguistics , philosophy , environmental health
Background A number of studies have shown that the diagnosis of developmental language disorder (DLD) can be unstable over time, such that young children with a diagnosis of DLD may show symptoms more characteristics of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at a later date. Method To estimate the types and prevalence of ASD 469 individuals with a DLD, consecutively assessed in the same clinic during a period of 10 years, and 2345 controls from the general population were screened for ASD through the nationwide Danish Psychiatric Central Register (DPCR). The mean length of observation was 34.7 years, and the mean age at follow‐up 35.8 (range: 28.3–46.7) years. Results At follow‐up, 10 (2.1%) in the DLD group and two (0.09%) in the comparison group were known in the DPCR with a diagnosis of any ASD ( P < 0.0001; odds ratio = 25.5; 95% confidence interval 5.5–116.9). Conclusion Our results provide additional support to the notion that DLD is a marker of increased vulnerability to the development of ASD.