whats the difference between asperger and autism?

IntenseWorld said:

[quote][quote]Debating clinicians not following diagnostic criteria correctly is irrelevant on this thread.[/quote][/quote]

I disagree, IntenseWorld.

The discussion gets to the very heart of the question of what the differences between Asperger's, High Functioning Autism, PD-NOS, and Classical Autism really are.

Sometimes it just comes down to nothing more than the diagnosing clinician's personal view of where to draw the, very fuzzy, lines between them.

I'm not saying that clinicians don't do that - indeed they do, but the question was, what's the difference between HFA and AS.  I explained what it is, and gave the NAS link about it.  How clinicians interpret diagnostic criteria is a separate issue.  That would need a thread entitled "why do clinicians not stick rigidly to HFA/AS diagnostic criteria?" or "why do clinicians diagnose on a whim!"

Apologies IntenseWorld, I didn't realise you'd been appointed Arbiter Of What Should Be Discussed In A Given Thread And What Titles Threads On A Given Topic Should Have.

But, to get back to the question in hand, whilst I agree that it would be nice for diagnosing clinicians to stick rigidly to the criteria as laid down by the diagnostic manuals, the practical reality is that because the Autistic Spectrum is just that, a Spectrum, it is impossible to define criteria that will uniquely and unfailingly place everyone on the spectrum into one box or another.

The truth of the matter is that the boundaries between the conditions are blurry, and ill defined, and, so, clinicians have to use their judgement when deciding upon the appropriate diagnosis.

It is also the case that the diagnostic criteria are informed by the way they are applied by clinicians.

It is therefore arguable that the way clinicians choose to interpret the diagnostic criteria is, in fact, of more importance in answering the question "what is the difference between Autism and Asperger's?" than what the criteria actually says.

IntenseWorld said:

[quote][quote]Debating clinicians not following diagnostic criteria correctly is irrelevant on this thread.[/quote][/quote]

I disagree, IntenseWorld.

The discussion gets to the very heart of the question of what the differences between Asperger's, High Functioning Autism, PD-NOS, and Classical Autism really are.

Sometimes it just comes down to nothing more than the diagnosing clinician's personal view of where to draw the, very fuzzy, lines between them.

I'm not saying that clinicians don't do that - indeed they do, but the question was, what's the difference between HFA and AS.  I explained what it is, and gave the NAS link about it.  How clinicians interpret diagnostic criteria is a separate issue.  That would need a thread entitled "why do clinicians not stick rigidly to HFA/AS diagnostic criteria?" or "why do clinicians diagnose on a whim!"

Apologies IntenseWorld, I didn't realise you'd been appointed Arbiter Of What Should Be Discussed In A Given Thread And What Titles Threads On A Given Topic Should Have.

But, to get back to the question in hand, whilst I agree that it would be nice for diagnosing clinicians to stick rigidly to the criteria as laid down by the diagnostic manuals, the practical reality is that because the Autistic Spectrum is just that, a Spectrum, it is impossible to define criteria that will uniquely and unfailingly place everyone on the spectrum into one box or another.

The truth of the matter is that the boundaries between the conditions are blurry, and ill defined, and, so, clinicians have to use their judgement when deciding upon the appropriate diagnosis.

It is also the case that the diagnostic criteria are informed by the way they are applied by clinicians.

It is therefore arguable that the way clinicians choose to interpret the diagnostic criteria is, in fact, of more importance in answering the question "what is the difference between Autism and Asperger's?" than what the criteria actually says.