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Biomedical subjects

M Ghaziuddin

Publications and source records attributed to M Ghaziuddin.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Pedantic speaking style differentiates Asperger syndrome from high-functioning autism.

Asperger syndrome (AS) is a pervasive developmental disorder recently introduced as a new diagnostic category in the ICD-10 and the DSM-IV. Along with motor clumsiness, pedantic speech has been proposed as a clinical feature of AS. However, few attempts have been made to define and measure this symptom. We studied 17 patients with AS (ICD-10; 14 male, 3 female; mean age 16.4 years, mean full-scale IQ 97) and compared them with a control group of 13 patients with normal-intelligence autism or high-functioning autism (HFA) (ICD-10/DSM-III-R; 12 male, 1 female; mean age 15.5 years, mean full-scale IQ 81.2). An operational definition of pedantic speech was formulated and a rating scale devised. 13 (76%) of the AS patients were rated as pedantic compared to 4 (31%) of the HFA group (chi 2 = 6.3; p = .01). Results suggest that pedantic speech is common in AS and may help differentiate AS from high-functioning autism.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Electroconvulsive treatment in adolescents with pharmacotherapy-refractory depression.

The effectiveness and safety of ECT in pharmacotherapy-refractory depression was examined in 11 hospitalized adolescents (ages 16.3 +/- 1.7 years, 10 females) with a primary DSM-III-R diagnosis of mood disorder, which had failed to respond to three or more adequate trials of antidepressant pharmacotherapy. After a thorough diagnostic evaluation, patients received a course of ECT involving 11.2 +/- 2.0 (range 8-15) administrations. ECT was commenced with bilateral treatment in 2 adolescents and nondominant right electrode placement in 9 patients; 5 of the 9 patients were subsequently changed to bilateral treatment. All 11 patients improved to a clinically significant degree. Significant improvements were noted in scores on the Children Depression Rating Scale-Revised (CDSR-R) and the Global Assessment of Functioning Scale (GAF) (p < 0.05). Euthymia, defined as CDRS-R score < or = 40, was achieved by 64% (7/11) of patients. The Mini-Mental State Examination showed no significant decline in cognitive functioning. Neuropsychological testing completed in 5 subjects both before ECT and 1-5 days after the last treatment, indicated a significant decline in attention, concentration, and long-term memory search. Minor side effects, experienced within the first 12 hours of treatment, were headache (80% of patients) and nausea/vomiting (64%). The potentially serious complication of tardive seizure (after full recovery of consciousness) occurred in 1 adolescent. Prolonged seizures (> 2.5 minutes) were noted in 7 of the 11 patients (9.6% of the 135 ECT administrations). Pending further research on ECT in youth, it is recommended that ECT should only be administered to youth in hospital settings, that all regularly administered psychotropic medications (including antidepressants) be discontinued before ECT and restarted after the final administration of ECT, and that physicians be aware that 12 treatments are usually sufficient, but that 15 treatments may occasionally be necessary for treating depressed adolescents. With the understanding that scientific evaluation of ECT in youth is lacking, it appears that ECT can be an effective and relatively safe treatment for depressed adolescents who have failed to respond to antidepressant pharmacotherapy.

Antidepressive Agents↗
PubMed1995

Life events and depression in children with pervasive developmental disorders.

To determine the role of life events in the occurrence of depression in children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), we compared 11 patients (DSM-III-R; 9 male; 2 female; M age: 11.0 years; M full-scale IQ: 75.3) with PDD and depression, with an age- and sex-matched control group of patients with PDD without depression (DSM-III-R; 9 male; 2 female; M age: 9.8 years; M full-scale IQ: 60.6). Information was collected about the occurrence of unpleasant life events in the 12 months prior to the onset of depression. Depressed children experienced significantly more life events in the 12 months prior to the onset of depression. Exit events such as bereavement were more common in the depressed group. Findings suggest that, as in the general population, significant life events, particularly those with a negative impact, may contribute to the occurrence of depression in children with PDD. Future studies should explore the role of both biologic factors and environmental stressors in the onset of depression in this population.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed1995

Brief report: thought disorder in Asperger syndrome: comparison with high-functioning autism.

Asperger syndrome (AS) is a pervasive developmental disorder generally regarded as a variant of autism. While it has been included in the ICD-10 and DSM-IV as a distinct diagnostic entity, it is still unclear to what extent it differs from high-functioning autism (HFA). Persons with HFA have been reported to show a variety of deficits of thought processes. Abnormalities such as poor reality testing, perceptual distortions, and areas of cognitive slippage have been described using the Rorschach inkblot test (Dykens, Volkmar, & Glick, 1991). Since AS has been conceptualized as a mild variant of autism, we hypothesized that persons with AS will have fewer abnormalities on the Rorschach test compared to persons with HFA. To test this hypothesis, we compared 12 subjects with AS (ICD-10, 10 male, mean age = 12.2 +/- 3.3 years, mean full-scale IQ = 99.6) with 8 subjects with HFA (ICD-10/DSM-III-R, 7 male, mean age = 12.2 +/- 3.8 years, mean full-scale IQ = 83.4) on the Rorschach test. AS subjects demonstrated a trend towards greater levels of disorganized thinking than the HFA group. They were also more likely to be classified as "Introversive" suggesting that AS subjects may have more complex inner lives involving elaborate fantasies, Also, AS subjects tended to be more focused on their internal experiences. However, overall, the Rorschach test was not found to differentiate the two diagnostic groups on the majority of structural variables. Implications of these findings are discussed with regard to the diagnostic validity of Asperger syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Obstetric factors in Asperger syndrome: comparison with high-functioning autism.

Asperger syndrome (AS) is a pervasive developmental disorder widely regarded as a mild variant of autism. To investigate if AS is associated with a history of fewer obstetric insults compared to autism, we examined the developmental history and obstetric records of 10 males with AS (mean full scale IQ 95.3), and compared them with 10 autistic males with a full scale IQ of 70 or above (so-called high-functioning autism; mean full scale IQ 82.6). Males with AS showed a trend toward lower Apgar scores at one minute (chi-square = 4; df = 1; P = 0.04) and were more likely to have been born to mothers outside the optimal age group of 20-30 years (chi-square = 5; df = 1; P = 0.02). They were also less likely to have been irritable and floppy as infants (chi-square = 3.8; df = 1; P = 0.05). However, the total optimality scores did not differ significantly between the two groups.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Autistic disorder in Noonan syndrome.

Few reports have described the psychiatric co-morbidity of Noonan syndrome. While mental retardation is a common feature of Noonan syndrome, the diagnosis of autism using operational criteria has not been reported. In this paper, the authors describe the association of Noonan syndrome with autism. They propose that the co-morbid diagnosis of autism should be considered during the clinical assessment of persons with Noonan syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Is clumsiness a marker for Asperger syndrome?

Although Asperger syndrome (AS) has been included in the ICD-10 as a distinct category within the pervasive developmental disorders, it is still unclear to what extent it differs from normal-intelligence autism (high-functioning autism; HFA). Persons with AS are said to be particularly clumsy. To test the hypothesis that clumsiness can reliably distinguish AS from autism, the present authors compared 11 patients with AS (ICD-10; 10 males; mean age, 13.6 years; mean IQ, 98) with nine patients with HFA (ICD-10/DSM-III-R; eight males; mean age, 12.9 years; mean IQ, 84). Clumsiness was assessed by the Bruininks-Oseretsky test. Both groups showed problems with coordination and the distribution of standard scores was virtually identical. This suggests that motor clumsiness, as measured by tests of coordination, may not reliably distinguish AS from HFA. However, qualitative differences may occur between the two groups in the manner in which movements are performed. Further research with larger samples may elicit differences into the pattern of motor deficits that occur in autism and AS.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Utility of the head computerized tomography scan in child and adolescent psychiatry.

Despite the widespread use of computerized tomography (CT) in child and adolescent psychiatry, studies have not looked at its overall usefulness in a clinical setting. In this report, the authors examined 122 inpatients who had CT scans of the head. Only 27 patients had an abnormal CT scan. None of the patients had a change made in the diagnosis or treatment as a result of the scan findings. The authors suggest that routine CT scans of the head in child and adolescent inpatients is of limited value. In view of the rising costs of medical investigations, and the risk of irradiation to the developing brain, they suggest the need for clear indications for this procedure in clinical child and adolescent psychiatry.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

ADHD and PDD.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗
PubMed1992

Autism in Down's syndrome: presentation and diagnosis.

Although autism is said to occur rarely with Down's syndrome, it may be more common in those persons with Down's syndrome who also show superimposed behavioural problems. In this brief report, the authors explore this possibility. They describe three patients with Down's syndrome who were referred for behavioural reasons and were found to have coexisting autism. They propose that a systematic study of the association of these two conditions may have implications on research and clinical practice.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Mood disorder in a group of self-cutting adolescents.

This study describes the occurrence of mood disorder in a group of adolescent inpatients involved in self-cutting behavior. Although self-cutting is generally said to be associated with borderline personality disorder, a substantial number of patients who cut themselves in our study were clinically depressed. In addition, the self-cutting adolescents had a high prevalence of child abuse, past psychiatric history, and family psychiatric history. The incidents tended to spread by contagion and occur at times of change affecting the milieu. Clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Adolescent↗