A new study finds that adults with autism are at higher risk for a number of health problems, ranging from diabetes and obesity to heart failure. In a review of insurance records for more than 23,000 adults, researchers found that medical and psychiatric issues are much more prevalent in those with autism as compared to individuals without the neurodevelopmental disorder. Nearly all medical conditions were significantly more common in adults with autism than controls, including diabetes, gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, epilepsy, sleep disorders, dyslipidemia, hypertension and obesity, researchers reported in a summary of their findings presented at the 2014 International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta.
Eating disorders, mechanical falls, vision and hearing impairments, osteoporosis and chronic heart failure were significantly more common among adults with autism than controls. Depression and anxiety were more than twice as common for those on the spectrum while bipolar disorder was eight times as likely. There was also 12-fold increase in the risk of epilepsy for this group. Nearly a third of those with autism in the study had obesity or hypertension, conditions that affected less than 20 percent of those without the neurodevelopmental disorder. Cancer rates, however, were similar for those with and without autism.
Although it’s well-known that children with autism face more medical and psychiatric diagnoses than their peers, this is the first large study to examine how common these issues are in adults. Researchers suggest that one reason for the high prevalence of health problems among adults with autism could be that the social and communication difficulties as well as the sensory sensitivities common among this population may lead to reduced preventive care. They conclude that physicians need better training on how to treat individuals on the spectrum throughout the life span and improvements needed in the transition from pediatric to adult medical care systems.
Lee A. Wilkinson, PhD, CCBT, NCSP is author of the award-winning book, A Best Practice Guide to Assessment and Intervention for Autism and Asperger Syndrome in Schools, published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers. He is also editor of a recent volume in the APA School Psychology Book Series, Autism Spectrum Disorder in Children and Adolescents: Evidence-Based Assessment and Intervention in Schools and author of the new book, Overcoming Anxiety and Depression on the Autism Spectrum: A Self-Help Guide Using CBT.