TY - JOUR
T1 - Prevalence of Asperger Syndrome symptomatology and associated variables in Spanish preschoolers
AU - Jiménez, Eva A.Araújo
AU - Ballabriga, María Claustre Jane
AU - Martin, Albert Bonillo
AU - Canals, Josefa
AU - Viñas, Ferrán
AU - Doménech-Llaberia, Edelmira
PY - 2012/1/1
Y1 - 2012/1/1
N2 - Asperger's Syndrome (AS) forms part of the whole spectrum of autistic disorders. Until recently it has not been studied in early ages. The aim of this study is to determine the AS's prevalence of symptoms in general preschool, rural and urban population. In addition, the association of the development areas and symptoms of anxiety and the presence of symptoms of AS was analized. The sample of this study consisted in 1104 preschool children between 3-6 years old. The presence of AS's symptoms was evaluated by a screening tool for psychiatric disorders. This tool was applied to both, preschooler's parents and their teachers. The prevalence of symptoms of AS for parents and teachers was 11.7%o and 8.1%o, respectively. The presence of AS's symptoms was associated with language compression delays, general and fine motor coordination, self-help skills and impairment in game activities. In addition, our results showed that the AS has a strong association with specific phobia symptoms and tics. We conclude that an early detection of AS's symptoms is possible since we found similar prevalence described in other recent researches. Given the impairment associated with AS, its detection is highly recommended.
AB - Asperger's Syndrome (AS) forms part of the whole spectrum of autistic disorders. Until recently it has not been studied in early ages. The aim of this study is to determine the AS's prevalence of symptoms in general preschool, rural and urban population. In addition, the association of the development areas and symptoms of anxiety and the presence of symptoms of AS was analized. The sample of this study consisted in 1104 preschool children between 3-6 years old. The presence of AS's symptoms was evaluated by a screening tool for psychiatric disorders. This tool was applied to both, preschooler's parents and their teachers. The prevalence of symptoms of AS for parents and teachers was 11.7%o and 8.1%o, respectively. The presence of AS's symptoms was associated with language compression delays, general and fine motor coordination, self-help skills and impairment in game activities. In addition, our results showed that the AS has a strong association with specific phobia symptoms and tics. We conclude that an early detection of AS's symptoms is possible since we found similar prevalence described in other recent researches. Given the impairment associated with AS, its detection is highly recommended.
KW - Asperger's Syndrome
KW - Diagnosis
KW - Epidemiology
KW - Preschool students
KW - Psychiatric symptoms
M3 - Article
VL - 44
SP - 67
EP - 74
JO - Revista Latinoamericana de Psicologia
JF - Revista Latinoamericana de Psicologia
SN - 0120-0534
IS - 2
ER -