Young Adults With Asperger Syndrome Prone To Depression

 

More Frequent Depressions for Young Adults With Asperger Syndrome

A recent research from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, revealed that almost 70% of young adults with Asperger syndrome have suffered from depression.   Psychiatric care staff should be aware of this finding so that patients are given the right treatment to prevent further harm.

 

The Research

The study found out that there are around 70% of the young adults with Asperger Syndrome had at least one previous episode of depression, and up to 50 % had had repeated episodes.  The mean age of the group was just 27 years.   The study has shown that mood disorders and anxiety disorders are very common among young adults with Asperger syndrome.

Challenge to Diagnose Depression

One of the challenge for psychiatric care staff is to detect depression early.   Depression and anxiety can be more difficult to detect in people with autism spectrum because their facial expressions and body language are often not as easy to read, and because they may have difficulties in describing emotions.This goes for both clinics that carry out assessments for autism spectrum disorders, and for general psychiatric care.

 

One third also have ADHD

Aligned with previous studies, this study also shows that around one third of people with Asperger syndrome also have ADHD. 

 

Similarity between Asperger and schizophrenia

The study also show that characteristics can be similar for Asperger syndrome and schizophrenia. Individuals with either syndrome both demonstrated high levels of autistic traits according to a self-report questionnaire. Moreover, the ability to interpret social interactions seems to be just as impaired in schizophrenia as in Asperger syndrome.

 

Significance of the Study

The study highlighted the high probability of young adults with Asperger syndrome could suffered from depression.     Psychiatric care staff should be aware of this finding so that patients are given the right treatment to prevent further harm.   For individuals in the autism spectrum, hopefully there are more effective ways to make detection of depression easier.