Psychiatria pre prax 1/2013

Autism spectrum disorders in adulthood

Autism spectrum disorders are among the disorders of mental development that have a major impact on a person‘s personality formation, development, and level of some skills. A lifetime deficit in social communicative skills significantly affects the capacity of an individual for social functioning and, thus, his general adaptability to everyday life situations. There has been a significant increase in the rate of diagnosing this condition worldwide. Rather than being a fashionable diagnosis, autism is considered to be a serious issue requiring special measures in health, academic, and social domains. Manifestations of autism in adulthood, frequent comorbidities, and problems encountered by adult people with an autism spectrum disorder are described.

Keywords: autism, Asperger syndrome, autism spectrum disorders, adulthood.