A recent study performed at the Center for Autism and Related disorders at the Kennedy Krieger Institute has found that 1 in 3 children with Autism Spectrum Disorders also present with ADHD.  The long-term study of 162 children who were tracked starting when they were still infants or toddlers. By age 4-8, 63/162 original children were determined to have Autism. 18 of the 63 children with Autism also had clinically significant symptoms of ADHD. Additionally, the research showed that children who presented with both Autism and ADHD were often more impaired than the children who presented with just Autism.  Researchers stated that kids with both conditions “were more than twice as likely to have significant cognitive delays, the study found, and they also had more struggles with social abilities and adaptive functioning.”

Here is the link to the article and the title of the study, and abstract if you guys want to read up more: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2013/06/06/nearly-autism-adhd/18106/,

Association between severity of behavioral phenotype and comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorders

Abstract: Autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are neurodevelopmental disorders that cannot be codiagnosed under existing diagnostic guidelines (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association, 4th ed., text rev.). However, reports are emerging that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is sometimes comorbid with autism spectrum disorder. In the current study, we examined rates of parent-reported clinically significant symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in school-aged children (4–8 years) with autism spectrum disorder, most of whom were first enrolled in our research protocols as toddlers. Results revealed that children with autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder had lower cognitive functioning, more severe social impairment, and greater delays in adaptive functioning than children with autism spectrum disorder only. Implications for clinical practice include the need to assess for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms at an early age in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Research is needed to determine efficacious interventions for young children with autism spectrum disorder with comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder to optimize outcomes.

–Stephanie