The current diagnostic and statistical manual of mental health disorder (DSM)V which was updated in 2013, placed diagnostic criteria for disorders such as Autistic disorders, Asperger syndrome, Pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified into an umbrella which is now called ASD ("Autism Speaks," 2016; "CDC," 2016). Under the current DSMV, diagnostic criteria for ASD has five criterions A through E and the child must meet the requirements of each criterion to qualify for diagnosis for ASD. For example, the child must meet 3 of the lists in category A; two of the lists in category B; category C must be present; category D must be specified and category D must be ruled out. To further explain each category, here …show more content…
Diagnosing ASD involves ruling out other behavioral and neurological disorders that might present like an ASD is one of the steps. The following are few of the differential diagnosis for ASD:
●Widespread of intellectual disability: Intellectual disability (ID) can look like ASD if the child is very young because of the difficulty of discerning between ASD and ID since some of the children with ASD also have ID. One way to differentiate is that a child with cognitive impairment has intact social and communication skills; while a child with ASD might or might not have cognitive impairment.
●Social (pragmatic) communication disorder: Children with ASD area unable to carry out back and forth conversation and have difficulty in group plays, taking turns and sequences of