Predicting the diagnosis of autism in adults using the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) questionnaire.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Many adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remain undiagnosed. Specialist assessment clinics enable the detection of these cases, but such services are often overstretched. It has been proposed that unnecessary referrals to these services could be reduced by prioritizing individuals who score highly on the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), a self-report questionnaire measure of autistic traits. However, the ability of the AQ to predict who will go on to receive a diagnosis of ASD in adults is unclear.

Method

We studied 476 adults, seen consecutively at a national ASD diagnostic referral service for suspected ASD. We tested AQ scores as predictors of ASD diagnosis made by expert clinicians according to International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 criteria, i

SUBMITTER: Ashwood KL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4988267 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature