by Sorcha Ni Dhomhnaill

Created on: February 15, 2009

Asperger's syndrome is a relatively new diagnosis and many professionals are still unfamiliar with it. The criteria for diagnosis were only recently defined, and many times the stereotypes about Asperger's can get in the way of proper diagnosis. It's important to remember that no individual will fit the criteria exactly. If someone does not meet the criteria for a diagnosis, they may still be given a diagnosis of "atypical Asperger's syndrome."

Possible conditions to rule out when Asperger's is suspected include ADD, ADHD, Nonverbal Learning Disorder, Semantic Pragmatic Disorder, Broader Autism Phenotype, Pervasive Development Disorder, Multiplex Development Disorder, and High Functioning Autism. There is also a possibility of Tourette's syndrome, anxiety, depression, personality disorders, OCD or eating disorders, though any of these could be comorbid with Asperger's. If that seems like a lot, it may have to do with how recent and little understood many of the discoveries of behavioral differences are. Many clinicians disagree with the classification of these different disorders because they see it as "splitting hairs." Pervasive Development Disorder is sometimes considered to be a "throwaway" diagnosis, though it does have the advantage of covering those on the autism spectrum that would otherwise not be able to have a diagnosis.

Asperger's was discovered in the 1940s by Dr. Hans Asperger, but the disorder was not properly described until 1981. Since then, different clinicians in different countries have various diagnostic criteria for Asperger's. Gillberg's Criteria were developed in 1989, as well as those of Peter Szatmari. Tony Attwood is the originator of the Australian Scale for Asperger's Syndrome, which is specifically designed for diagnosis in children, along with M.S. Garnett. With Carol Gray, he developed the "discovery of Aspie" criteria, which focus on the positive aspect of Asperger's, seeking to depathologize it to some extent.

In the United States, the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM IV) is used to diagnose Asperger's syndrome. The disorder first appeared in the early 1990s. It states that there is no communication or language delay with Asperger's, in order to differentiate it from other autism spectrum disorders.

The World Health Organization ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders has its own diagnostic criteria which also state that there is no significant language delay with Asperger's, and lists other possibilities for differential diagnosis.

All of the criteria listed above are linked at the bottom of this page.

Sources cited:

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_diagnos tic_criteria_for_Asperger%27s_Syndrome

http://asperge rinfo.blogspot.com/2007/12/dsm-iv-diagnostic-criteri a-for-asperger.htmlhttp://aspergerinfo.blogspot.com/ 2007/12/icd-10-who-1993-diagnostic-criteria-for.html

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