Asperger's Syndrome - Research Paper Example

Asperger’s Syndrome Introduction Asperger’s Syndrome has been characterized as a sort of high functioning version of autism that afflicts individuals of all ages, genders, and races. With as much as 1 in every 1,000 individuals with the disorder, it is one of the most pervasive mental disorders in the general population. The disorder is characterized by impairments in social functioning and repetitive and in-depth interests. It’s been speculated that many famous individuals have had exhibited traits of Asperger’s Syndrome, including Leonardo da Vinci, and Albert Einstein, leading many to question the means to which it should be classified. While the disorder widely prevalent, in great part the disorder has remained controversial among researchers as they debate whether it should constitute a separate disorder, or be classified along the lines of autism spectrum disorder, as a version of high-functioning autism. This essay functions to consider a number of important factors concerning Asperger’s Syndrome, including its history, severity, and treatment options, in an effort to gain a more informed understanding of its ramifications as a mental disorder afflicting thousands of individuals. What is the Disorder? Asperger’s Syndrome is an autism spectrum disorder. The disorder is named after physician Hans Asperger who studied and noted children who had difficulty with nonverbal communication ability. (Frith 1991) In addition to these traits, Asperger also noted that they had little empathy with their peers and were also physically clumsy. While Hans Asperger first noted these characteristics in 1944, it wasn’t until nearly fifty years later that it became an official diagnosis. Today physicians continue to debate the exact classifications of the disorder. Some researchers debate whether it is a disorder unto itself, while others contend that it is a version of high-functioning autism (H.F.A.) and argue that it should be replace as a separate disorder and included on the autism disability scale. Still, others content that it isn’t a disorder at all and rather a personality characteristic; these individuals point to the number of highly productive and famous individuals with the disorder and argue that its existence this late on the scale of human evolution indicates that a number of traits associated with it are actually beneficial to humanity. (Clarke 2007) Asperger’s Syndrome has also been characterized as pervasive developmental disorder (PDD). These are psychological disorders that are embedded in an individual’s personality and affect their social functioning. These disorders also affect the individual’s thought processes, and this is seen in Asperger’s Syndrome as many patients diagnosed with the disorder exhibit repetitive and very involved interests, often for short periods of time before moving on to another interest. (NINDS 2007) Type of Disability As noted the disability is controversial in that researchers debate on its classification. While it is currently classified as a separate mental disorder, many individuals have proposed that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders alter the classification so that it is known as a version of high-functioning autism. (W.H.O. 2006) Other individuals argue that instead of change the syndrome’s classification label, the criteria that is attributed to the syndrome should be altered instead. What has been determined is that Asperger’s Syndrome has many traits associated with autism spectrum disorder. It is a subset of the autism phenotype that characterized people with specific social dysfunctions that are common to those who have been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. (Piven 1997) Other similarities between traditionally characterized autism and Asperger’s Syndrome include impaired cognitive development, Rett Syndrome, and childhood disintegrative disorder. While there are tremendous similarities, there are also elements that distinguish it from traditional autism. Autism is generally characterized by severe social dysfunction and mental retardation; while those diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome exhibit social problems, in most instances they are able to lead functioning lives, and remain employable for long periods. They are also capable of having children and maintaining regular familial relations. Severity As Asperger’s Syndrome is determined by a number of symptoms rather than one single element, as in cancer or aids, there are a series of traits with varying degrees of severity that have been attributed to Asperger’s patients. One of the most pervasive characteristics of Asperger’s Syndrome is social impairment of those afflicted with the disorder. (Klin 2006) The most noticeable element of the social impairment is a lack of empathy exhibited by the patients. In addition, individuals with the syndrome exhibit an inability to develop lasting friendships or to seek shared interests and enjoyments with others. It’s not understood exactly why, but the individual’s lack of emotional reciprocity and disability in being able to read non-verbal social cues, including eye contact and tacit body language surely contributes to the challenges associated with the disorder. While individuals with severe autism are often socially withdrawn, those with Asperger’s Syndrome are able to make social contact and actively engaged. Even though they lack the extreme withdrawal of autism patients their social interactions have been termed slightly off-kilter, as they will often be accompanied by long winded speeches that lack the reciprocal give and take of natural conversation. While individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome are able to articulate social norms on a theoretical level in direct experimental observation they are oftentimes to associate these elements into their regular social interactions and elements of conversation. Another element of Asperger’s Syndrome involves the repetitive and deep-seated interests that these individuals exhibit. While Dustin Hoffman’s famous character in Rainman was an idiot-savant his rigid routines and repetitive interests have much in common with patients of Asperger’s Syndrome. These individuals will oftentimes become entirely preoccupied with a specific topic and collect large amounts of informational data on the topic. Physicians have noted instances where individuals have detailed knowledge of train schedules, or weather maps. In some instances these repetitive interests have been implemented in positive ways, as patients with Asperger’s Syndrome have been able to direct their intensely focused interests into scientific endeavors such as the classification of numerous species of insects, or into research of astronomical phenomenon. In addition to these focused interests, individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome will oftentimes exhibit repetitive physical movements such as flapping or twisting that are sometimes accompanied by tics. Indeed, it’s these intense interests and repetitive physical movements that are perhaps the elements that physicians and psychiatrists rely on most when diagnosing individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome. In addition to these discussed characteristics, individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome also exhibit varying severity of language and speech impairment. While their ability to acquire language is relatively uniform with that of the general public, their speech patterns oftentimes differ greatly. Individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome oftentimes exhibit verbose speech patterns that are accompanied by long-winded speeches. Asperger’s patients also tend towards pendantic speech tendencies, metaphors that carry meaning only for the speaker, and other elements of conversation that place great emphasis on the individual, rather than on their ability to reciprocate in conversation. Other elements include an inability to understand figurative language such as irony that is characteristic of normal conversation patterns. Because of these difficulties individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome have also been characterized as lacking greatly in a sense of humor. There are also a number of miscellaneous elements of Asperger’s Syndrome that physicians have noted. Individuals have noted a wide-array of perceptions deficiencies, and they have also frequently exhibited irregular sleep patterns; these sleep patterns include a high frequency of awakening at night, particularly for children that have been diagnosed. In addition, a relative level of clumsiness has been noted, which often results in these individuals delayed ability in activities that require balance perception, such as bicycling; individuals with Asperger’s Syndrom often exhibit irregular body language as an element of their feeling awkward of uncomfortable. (McPartland 2006)  While deficiencies in perception and motor skills have been noted, some individuals exhibit heightened senses in similar or adjacent sense perceptions, including heightened auditory ability, and the ability to detect small changes in visual landscapes that other individuals might not notice. History While Asperger’s Syndrome was first observed in a clinical sense in 1944 by Hans Asperger and characterized as an official mental disorder fifty years later, the disorder has surely been around for centuries. Indeed, many historical individuals, such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Isaac Newton have been theorized to have at least strong traits associated with the disorder. Hans Asperger’s observations came after observing four children, to which he deemed ‘little professors’ after their advanced vocabularies. (Frith 1991) It wasn’t until 1981 that Lorna Wing popularized the term Asperger’s syndrome in a number of scientific papers, and until 1991 that these papers were translated into English and popularized among the United States medical community. (Baskin 2006) Who gets it? Asperger’s Syndrome affects individuals of all genders and races, with the disorder slightly more prevalent in males than females. Estimates to the number of individuals with Asperger’s vary with different reports placing the figure at .26 per 1,000 individuals to as high as 4.28 to every 1,000, general figures estimate the number of be around 1 to every 1,000 members of the population with Asperger’s Syndrome. The disorder is often associated with those who also have anxiety and depression symptoms. Stages of the Disability The disorder is most readily diagnosed in childhood. While it doesn’t share typical stages in which individuals progress through, as in the cases of cancer or progressive illnesses, the individuals have been understood to ‘grow’ out of Asperger’s Syndrome. Studies show that as many as 20% of individuals diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome in childhood no longer met the criteria as adults. (Wallis 2009) Who Diagnoses it? Asperger’s Syndrome is diagnosed by clinical professionals, most specifically psychologists and psychiatrists. This is due to the close relation of Asperger’s Syndrome with mental dysfunctions. Treatment While there is no outright cure for Asperger’s Syndrome, a number of treatment options are available, including medicine that targets social anxiety. In addition cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown to be effective as the individual is able to gain social support and skills that enable them to function more readily in social situations. (Woodbury-Smith 2008) In addition to these treatment aspects, there are a number of support groups available for people with Asperger’s Syndrome. These individuals oftentimes refer to themselves as ‘aspies’ and constitute support groups throughout the country. Conclusion While Asperger’s Syndrome isn’t as debilitating a disability as other aspects of autism, it is nevertheless necessary to recognize its traits as it can pose a significant challenge for the individual and the individual’s family. The patient’s lack of empathy and repetitive interests can pose a social challenge for family members and by recognizing these challenges in the individual they can aid them in their social discomfort. While there is no outright cure for the disorder, with understanding family members, medicine, and a positive and proactive approach to life the individual can in most instances live a full and happy existence. References Asperger H; tr. and annot. Frith U (1991) [1944]. "Autistic psychopathy in childhood". in Frith U. Autism and Asperger syndrome. Cambridge University Press. pp. 37–92. Baskin JH, Sperber M, Price BH (2006). "Asperger syndrome revisited". Rev Neurol Dis 3 (1): 1–7. Clarke J, van Amerom G (2007). "Surplus suffering: differences between organizational understandings of Aspergers syndrome and those people who claim the disorder". Disabil Soc 22 (7): 761–76. Klin A (2006). "Autism and Asperger syndrome: an overview". Rev Bras Psiquiatr 28 (suppl 1): S3–S11. McPartland J, Klin A (2006). "Aspergers syndrome". Adolesc Med Clin 17 (3): 771–88 National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) (2007-07-31). "Asperger syndrome fact sheet". http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/asperger/detail_asperger.htm. Piven J, Palmer P, Jacobi D, Childress D, Arndt S (1997). "Broader autism phenotype: evidence from a family history study of multiple-incidence autism families" (PDF). Am J Psychiatry 154 (2): 185–90. PMID 9016266. http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/154/2/185.pdf.  Wallis C (2009-11-02). "A powerful identity, a vanishing diagnosis". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/health/03asperger.html. Woodbury-Smith MR, Volkmar FR (2008). "Asperger syndrome". Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 18 (1): 2–11. World Health Organization (2006). "F84. Pervasive developmental disorders". International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (10th (ICD-10) ed.). http://apps.who.int/classifications/apps/icd/icd10online/?gf80.htm+f840.  Read More