re: #546 NJDhockeyfan

I had read somewhere that the DSM-IV is currently being revised for the new DSM-V, and the revision may merge the definitions for autism and Aspergers.

But overall the manual’s biggest changes eliminate diagnoses that it contends are essentially subtypes of broader illnesses — and urge doctors to concentrate more on the severity of their patients’ symptoms. Thus the draft sets “autism spectrum disorders” as the diagnosis that encompasses a full range of autistic brain conditions — from mild social impairment to more severe autism’s lack of eye contact, repetitive behavior and poor communication — instead of differentiating between the terms autism, Asperger’s or “pervasive developmental disorder” as doctors do today.

The psychiatric group expects that overarching change could actually lower the numbers of people thought to suffer from mental disorders.

Except in the case of autism, it could end up increasing the number of kids diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder and further tax limited resources. I’d also expect that altering the definition would result in a higher incidence as other diagnoses are lumped together in the new disorder terminology.