PDD-NOs and ADHD | Autism PDD

Both my sons Dr's Dont believe in duel dx' ing ,PDD and ADHD,his ped and dev ped,both think Its just another part of Autism.

Both think he meets all the criteria but see no reason to dx him because his supports wont change,and they say a Autism Dx, trumps a ADHD Dx.

Linda

My son has autism and could be dx as add but his Dr. said it is part of his autism and not a seperate dx.  We tried adderall and it was a disaster.Has anyone ever been told their child has both? Our psy explained my son has moderate PDD and severe ADHD. He put him on a med called vyvanse during the day and risperdal at night.We have seen improvements.He can focus.He was very social yesterday not quiet like other 7yo I know but he didn't attack.He normally charges people or kicks.   
Leah

If ADHD is a part of ASD and does not require a separate dx, when do you start thinking about medicating your child?

The reason why I am asking is that we recently had a provisonal dx of HFA and although the paed did not mention ADHD (DS was quite taken in by the new toys and wasn't being overly active), I am now thinking if he did not mention it because does not require another specific dx or he does not have it?

We went in expecting an ADHD dx and got ASD one instead, we were so overwhemed that we did not even ask about ADHD. Will talk about it further at the next appointment.

Back to the original question, if your ADHD child is on meds, at what age did you start. I personally think this lack of attention and hyperactivity is making things way more difficult for everyone, (him included) than his autism.

Mary

 

 That reminds of my Bro, The Dr tried to say ADHD and put him on strong meds. They made him so hyper active, like he was on speed. He went crazy and he does not have ADHD. (my dad's side has 4 neurological disorders None are ADHD). Anyways, no known told anyone about family history until this after it was to late. My bro either has SID or Audio processing disorder. He  is22 grown but has problems hearing his name and following directions.

When my son was diagnosed by the most respected Autism Center in our
state and by a Psychologist who has diagnosed MANY children, I specifically
asked her if my son had ADD (I didn't include the "H" part because he is not
hyperactive). She point blank told me "no, he does not". So at least at this
point in time he appears to be the "exception to the rule". Now, having said
that, this could change with time and as he ages. I do believe it becomes
easier to diagnose ADD in kids that are older....it becomes clearer when they
have difficulty focusing in school, etc.

My son did great in his ABA program and could easily focus for the 2 hour
session without getting overly distracted, etc (this was between the ages of
4.5-just recently). Time will tell if ADD is part of his make-up or not.

The doctors that diagnosed my son (from the Autism Clinic at the local Children's Hospital) said that they have never seen an autistic child without either ADHD or ADD. 

Tiffany

LL's Mom39300.323912037I think it is a part, even if not a part of the diagnostic criteria.  I think it was deliberately left out of the criteria, so as not to confuse issues.  So was SPD ... My ds has a double dx of asd and adhd. I kind of think that his adhd
symptoms are part of asd and he only has them in stimulating setting.
Actually neither the school nor any of our teacher/ socialworker relatives
think he is adhd. We tried several stimulants and he had huge anxiety
attacks and meltdowns on them.
So, I think it is more of a matter how you want to catagorize and label
symptoms. Most asd kids have hyperactivity but does that mean they are
adhd also?

ALthough ADHD symptoms are not officially part of the ASD criteria for any of the official dx's, it is found in virtually all kids on the spectrum (either with or without the hyperactivity factor).  In fact, many very well-respected autism docs are currently looking in to seeing if those symptoms can eventually be added to the criteria.  I think they haven't been so far because everyone wants to know before a child gets too old whether or not the child is on the spectrum so that child can get appropriate intervention.  IMHO, if ADHD criteria are added in order to GET a diagnosis, that would muddy the waters and make it even more difficult to pin down a diagnosis during the preschool years since MANY preschoolers exhibit signs of ADHD, especially boys.  In fact, ADHD symptoms are, to some extent "normal" at that age. On the other hand, sometimes ADHD symptoms don't surface until the school years when demands, especially on focus, are greater.  This is most true for those kids who don't exhibit high levels of activity or agitation.

All that said, both PDD-NOS and ADHD can be addressed in the same kind of educational setting. However, PDD-NOS has the most negative effect on development and doesn't go away.   Sometimes ADHD eventually goes away.  If it were me, I'd treat the PDD-NOS issues since they are the least understood by teachers. Most teachers have plenty of experience with ADHD.  Of course, you must address the ADHD, too.  Both of these disorders are well know to BCBA's, so you might ask that a BCBA evaluate your son in school (BCBA is a certified behavioral specialist).  I don't think kicking and "charging" people is seen as much with simple ADHD as it's seen with autism spectrum kids.  I think the services of a BCBA are warranted.  A functional behavioral assessment should be done and a positive Behavior Intervention Plan put in place, both at school and at home.  Search these two terms on this site and also at cecp.air.org and you'll get tons of info.

Well---ADHD symptoms are not a part of the autism criteria. If the child meets criteria for ADHD and the criteria for ASD---then I would think they have both!

My son has the dx of---"HFA with characteristics of ADHD" That's how our pdoc stated it. Medically---we treat the symptoms--no matter what the dx is!

my son also has an ADHD diagnosis in addition to his pdd-nos/autism
dx.

he is so young that we are not doing meds and he is learning to focus
better via ABA. you can see when the ADHD kicks in though!

i want to keep him off meds for as long as possible :)

L
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