Asperger's Syndrome Mental Health

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Asperger's Syndrome is a neurobiological disorder named after a Viennese physician, Hans Asperger, who in 1944 published a paper which described patterns of behaviour in several young boys who had normal intelligence and language development, but who exhibited behaviours similar in nature to Autism together with marked deficiencies in social and communication skills. In spite of the publication of his paper in the 1940's, it wasn't until 1994 that Asperger’s Syndrome was added to the DSM IV and only in the past few years has AS been recognized by professionals and parents.

Asperger's Disorder is a milder form of Autistic Disorder that is also referred to as Asperger's syndrome, Asperger's disorder, Asperger's, or just AS. Both Asperger's Disorder and Autistic Disorder are subgroups of a larger diagnostic category known either as Autistic Spectrum Disorders (more common Europe) or Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD) in the United States and other Western countries. It is recognized by the medical community as one of five neurobiological pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) considered to be part of the autistic spectrum.

Individuals affected by Asperger's Disorder are characterised by social isolation and eccentric behaviour during their childhood years. Such impairments are evident in two sided social interaction and non verbal communication. Speech is often peculiar due to abnormalities of inflection and a repetitive pattern; clumsiness is prominent both in their articulation and gross motor behaviour. Sufferers usually have a specific area of interest which usually leaves no space for more age appropriate, common interests.

By definition, those with AS have a normal IQ and many individuals (although not all), exhibit exceptional skill or talent in a specific area. Because of their high degree of functionality and their naiveté, those with AS are often viewed as eccentric or odd and can easily become victims of teasing and bullying. While language development seems, on the surface, normal, individuals with AS often have deficits in pragmatics and prosody. Vocabularies may be extraordinarily rich and some children sound like "little professors." However, persons with AS can be extremely literal and have difficulty using language in a social context.