Autism and suicide

Autism and suicide.
Children with autism may have a higher-than-average peril of contemplating or attempting suicide, a green study suggests. Researchers found that mothers of children with autism were much more no doubt than other moms to voice their child had talked about or attempted suicide: 14 percent did, versus 0,5 percent of mothers whose kids didn't have the disorder. The behavior was more low-class in older kids (aged 10 and up) and those whose mothers reasoning they were depressed, as well as kids whose moms said they were teased proextender. An autism authority not knotty in the research, however, said the bookwork had limitations, and that the findings "should be interpreted cautiously".

One rationale is that the information was based on mothers' reports, and that's a limitation in any study, said Cynthia Johnson, president of the Autism Center at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. Johnson also said mothers were asked about suicidal and "self-harming" jabber or behavior. "A lot of children with autism sing about or engross in self-harming behavior. That doesn't degenerate there's a suicidal intent".

Still, Johnson said it makes impression that children with autism would have a higher-than-normal imperil of suicidal tendencies. It's known that they have increased rates of downturn and anxiety symptoms, for example. The pay-off of suicidal behavior in these kids "is an important one and it deserves further study".

Autism spectrum disorders are a put together of developmental brain disorders that prevent a child's ability to communicate and interact socially. They group from severe cases of "classic" autism to the somewhat mild form called Asperger's syndrome. In the United States, it's been estimated that about one in 88 children has an autism spectrum disorder.

This week, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised that predominance to as gamy as one in 50 children. The changed findings, reported in the documentation Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, are based on surveys of nearly 800 mothers of children with an autism spectrum disorder, 35 whose kids were manumit of autism but suffered from depression, and nearly 200 whose kids had neither disorder.

The children ranged in length of existence from 1 to 16, and the autism spectrum also hodgepodge cases ranged in severity. Non-autistic children with hollow had the highest censure of suicidal natter and behavior, according to mothers - 43 percent said it was a maladjusted at least "sometimes".

Among children with autism spectrum disorders, those with indentation symptoms were at greatest endanger of suicidal talk or attempts. Overall, 77 percent of autistic children with suicidal behavior were considered to be depressed by their mothers. The results highlight the fait accompli that children with autism spectrum disorders humour from a scale of issues other than the classic autism symptoms, said Angela Gorman, one of the study's researchers.

And "Sometimes these other things get overshadowed by the autism spectrum unrest symptoms themselves," said Gorman, an subsidiary professor of stripling psychiatry at Penn State College of Medicine, in Hershey. She suggested that parents produce results bring to a close attention to what "normal behavior" is for their child, so they can comment when a potential red flag arises, such as an augment in sad moods or angry outbursts.

So "If you have any concerns, contain your child in for an evaluation with a psychologist or psychiatrist". Although the study tied having autism to more suicidal the rag or attempts, it didn't authenticate that these children are more likely to commit suicide. Besides gloominess symptoms, bullying also seemed to be a risk factor for suicidal behavior, the researchers found.

Kids with autism whose mothers said they were teased were three times more reasonable to show such behavior. And teasing was common, reported by 57 percent of mothers. That's in vanguard with a brand-new swotting that found nearly half of US teens with autism spectrum disorders have been bullied by other kids.

Johnson agreed that these modern development findings underscore the many issues children with autism spectrum disorders face. "These are helpless children". Johnson said she already talks with parents about the increased risks of the blues and angst associated with autism. As for rigid screening for suicidal behavior, that might be done in some cases. But there's no epidemic guideline on screening. Gorman said she thinks all children with autism spectrum disorders should, at some point, be screened for suicidal behavior.

It would mutate intelligence to wait until children are older, but there are no set-in-stone rules for how or when to screen. And if your lady is showing covert warning signs? Gorman said therapy would depend on each child's situation, including how severe the autism is and what co-existing problems - such as despondency - there might be. Johnson said that if parents are on edge about changes in their child's behavior, they should bring it up to their doctor. But she also stressed that humour or behavior shifts could have any number of causes get the facts. "My notification to parents is, don't panic".