Dsm 5 asd diagnosis manual#

In order to protect access to these services, the DSM revision should explicitly state that a new stand-alone diagnostic category retains that eligibility. We note that many people with severe autism access services that are mandated by state laws that contain language that directly points to the definition of ASD in the most recent version of the DSM. Any of the following labels, for example, may apply to this group: Autistic Disorder, Severe Autism, Profound Autism, or Classic Autism. This revision should include a distinct, stand-alone diagnostic category for the growing population of patients who exhibit the following suite of pathologies, among others that may be present: severe social-communication impairments, cognitive deficits, significant challenges in attaining basic living skills (with frequent need for 24-hour supervision and care), sensory dysregulation, and maladaptive behaviors (including repetitive or “looping” behaviors). NCSA therefore joins the growing chorus of researchers, clinicians, providers, families and affected individuals urging the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to eschew a mythical unity of “ASD” and instead revise the DSM to appropriately reflect radically diverse clinical realities and patient needs. For example, a young man with no language, a low IQ, few functional abilities, and aggressive, dangerous behaviors “has ASD,” while a college professor with social anxieties and some OCD also “has ASD.” This overbreadth subverts the essential purpose of psychiatric diagnostic labels: to describe a group of patients afflicted by a consistent set of impairments for the ultimate purpose of guiding meaningful interventions, services, research and betterment of health and psychosocial functioning.

Dsm 5 asd diagnosis manual#

The broadening of the construct of autism in the form of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5) criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in 2013, while well-intentioned, has had the effect of rendering the diagnosis essentially meaningless, as it allows for the same diagnosis to be given to wholly disparate individuals.