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Autistic Traits in Children With and Without ADHD

WHATS KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Studies examining the AUTHORS: Amelia Kotte, PhD,a Gagan Joshi, MD,b,c Ronna
prevalence and associated features of autistic traits (ATs) in Fried, EdD,a,b Mai Uchida, MD,a Andrea Spencer, MD,a
children with ADHD with exclusionary autism spectrum disorders K. Yvonne Woodworth, BA,a Tara Kenworthy, BA,a Stephen
suggest that children with ATs exhibit more severe social and V. Faraone, PhD,d and Joseph Biederman, MDa,b
aClinicaland Research Programs in Pediatric Psychopharmacology
interpersonal dysfunction reminiscent of the decits in children
with autism spectrum disorders. and Adult ADHD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston,
Massachusetts; bDepartment of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical
School and cAlan & Lorraine Bressler Center, Massachusetts
WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS: Our results suggest that ATs are General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts; and dDepartments of
overrepresented in ADHD children when compared with control Psychiatry and of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate
subjects. They also suggest that the presence of ATs is associated Medical University, Syracuse, New York
with more severe psychopathology as well as more impaired KEY WORDS
interpersonal, school, family, and cognitive functioning. ADD, ADHD, attention decit disorder, attention-decit/
hyperactivity disorder, AT, autistic traits, autism traits,
comorbidity, social disability
ABBREVIATIONS
ADDattention decit disorder

abstract ADHDattention-decit/hyperactivity disorder


ASDautism spectrum disorder
ATsautistic traits
OBJECTIVE: To assess the implications of autistic traits (ATs) in youth CBCLChild Behavior Checklist
with attention-decit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) without a diagnosis DSM-III-RDiagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
of autism. Disorders, Revised Third Edition
MGHMassachusetts General Hospital
METHODS: Participants were youth with (n = 242) and without (n = ORodds ratio
227) ADHD and controls without ADHD in whom a diagnosis of autism SAICASocial Adjustment Inventory for Children and Adolescents
SESsocioeconomic status
was exclusionary. Assessment included measures of psychiatric, psy-
WISC-RWechsler Intelligence Scale for ChildrenRevised
chosocial, educational, and cognitive functioning. ATs were operation-
Dr Kotte was involved signicantly in the acquisition of data,
alized by using the withdrawn + social + thought problems T scores analysis and interpretation of data, in the drafting and revising
from the Child Behavior Checklist. of the article, and in the nal approval of the to-be-published
version; Drs Joshi, Fried, Uchida, and Spencer were involved in
RESULTS: A positive AT prole was signicantly overrepresented the interpretation of data, in revising it critically for important
among ADHD children versus controls (18% vs 0.87%; P , .001). ADHD intellectual content, and nal approval of the version to be
children with the AT prole were signicantly more impaired than published; Ms Woodworth and Ms Kenworthy were involved in
the drafting and revising of the manuscript, analysis and
control subjects in psychopathology, interpersonal, school, family, and
interpretation of the data, and nal approval of the version to be
cognitive domains. published; Dr Faraone was signicantly involved in the
CONCLUSIONS: A substantial minority of ADHD children manifests ATs, interpretation of data, in the drafting and revising of the article,
and in the nal approval of the to-be-published article; and Dr
and those exhibiting ATs have greater severity of illness and dysfunc- Biederman made a substantial contribution to the conception
tion. Pediatrics 2013;132:e612e622 and design of the study, was signicantly involved in the
acquisition and interpretation of data, in the revision of the
manuscript, and in the nal approval of the to-be-published
version.
(Continued on last page)

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Twin, family, and linkage studies in- based on structured interview di- family, major sensorimotor handicaps,
dicate that attention-decit/hyperactivity agnoses. We did not exclude controls psychosis, autism, language barriers, or
disorder (ADHD) and autism spec- having other psychiatric disorders. an estimated IQ ,80 were exclusionary
trum disorders (ASDs) share a portion ADHD cases were identied from either for both ADHD and control participants.
of their heritable etiology.14 Genome- a major academic medical center, in Parents provided written informed con-
wide association studies found rare which we selected ADHD subjects from sent, and children and adolescents pro-
copy number variants shared between consecutive referrals to its pediatric vided written assent. The institutional
the 2 disorders,5 raising the possibility psychopharmacology clinic and from review board at MGH approved the study.
that some children with ADHD may a major health maintenance organiza-
manifest symptoms of autism even in tion, in which ADHD subjects were se- Assessment Procedures
the absence of a diagnosis of ASD. Re- lected from consecutively ascertained Psychiatric assessments relied on the
cent studies have identied that pediatric clinic outpatients. Healthy Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders
symptoms of autism or autistic traits controls were ascertained from out- and SchizophreniaEpidemiologic Ver-
(ATs) appear in 20% to 30% of children patients referred for routine physical sion,16,17 conducted directly and in-
with ADHD4,6,7 and that such children examinations to its pediatric medical dividually with the mothers and the
are more impaired than other children clinics at each setting identied from children. For children aged ,12 years
with ADHD, particularly in the domains their computerized records as not who could not provide reliable self-
of interpersonal communication and having ADHD. Further information on reports of their symptoms, interviews
empathy. However, these ndings re- the ascertainment of the sample have were conducted with their mothers
quire replication. been published in detail elsewhere.1013 (indirect interviews). Combining data
The main aim of the current study was to In previous articles,14,15 we reported from direct and indirect interviews, we
examine the prevalence and correlates that the rates of other psychiatric dis- considered a diagnosis positive if it
of ATs in youth with ADHD by using data orders in the control sample were low was endorsed in either interview. So-
from an existing, large-scale sample of and consistent with expectations from cial class was assessed by using the
referred youth with and without ADHD in population studies. Hollingshead and Redlich scale18
whom the diagnosis of autism was ex- Participants had a mean 6 SD age of Interviews were administered by highly
clusionary. We hypothesized that ATs 11.3 6 3.2 years, were 99% white, and
trained and supervised psychome-
would be prevalent in children with had a mean socioeconomic status
tricians, blinded to referral source or
ADHD and that their presence would be (SES) score of 1.7 6 0.9. The sample
diagnostic status (ADHD or control).
associated with higher levels of mor- included 274 children (52%) who
Based on 500 assessments from
bidity and disability. reported that he or she was tutored
interviews of children and adults, the
(ADHD: 172 [61%]; controls: 54 [22%]),
median k coefcient of agreement be-
METHODS repeated a grade (ADHD: 69 [25%];
tween a psychometrician and an ex-
controls: 18 [7%]), or took a special
Subjects perienced clinician was .98.
class (ADHD: 74 [26%]; controls: 5
Subjects were youth of both genders [2%]). Of the control children with ac- We used an empirically derived prole
derived from longitudinal, case-control ademic difculty (27% [n = 65]), 34% from the Child Behavior Checklist
family studies conducted at Massa- (n = 22) met DSM-III-R criteria for $1 (CBCL) to dene ATs (CBCL-AT) by using
chusetts General Hospital (MGH).8,9 psychiatric disorder versus 28% (n = a cutoff of 195 from the combined
These studies included participants 49) of those without academic difculty T scores of the withdrawn, social prob-
aged 6 to 18 years with (n = 280) and (n = 177). Of the ADHD children with lems, and the thought problems sub-
without (n = 242) Diagnostic and Sta- academic difculty (75% [n = 209]), scales19 that correctly classied 78% of
tistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 81% (n = 169) met DSM-III-R criteria for all subjects with ASD from a psychiat-
Revised Third Edition (DSM-III-R), ADHD $1 psychiatric disorder versus 73% (n rically referred sample with and with-
ascertained from pediatric clinics at = 52) of those without academic dif- out ASD. Two subscales were created
a large health maintenance organiza- culty (n = 71). These numbers suggest from the CBCL by summing the anxiety/
tion and referrals to a pediatric psy- that the presence of a psychiatric ill- depression, aggression, and attention
chopharmacology clinic. Within each ness may account for the increased scales (severe dysregulation: sum of T
setting, we selected non-ADHD normal prevalence of academic functioning scores $210; decient emotional self-
controls from pediatric medical clinics difculties. Adoption, unavailable nuclear regulation: sum of T scores of 180210).20

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Psychosocial functioning was assessed Intelligence Scale for ChildrenRevised Sociodemographic Characteristics
by using the Social Adjustment In- (WISC-R)25 and the perseverative ADHD + CBCL-AT participants were
ventory for Children and Adolescents errors subtest of the Wisconsin Card slightly younger than control subjects
(SAICA).21 Using methodology recom- Sorting Test.26 Using procedures sug- and were of a more disadvantageous
mended by Reynolds22 and used pre- gested by Sattler,27 we estimated Full SES status, scoring an average of 2.18
viously by this team,23 we identied Scale IQ from the block design and vo- on the Hollingshead measure of SES,
children who were socially disabled on cabulary subtests of the WISC-R by us- than ADHD participants (1.8 on the Hol-
the basis of the discrepancy between ing age-corrected scaled scores. We lingshead) and controls (1.6) (Table 1).
the expected SAICA scaled score (de- computed the Freedom From Distract- Therefore, all subsequent analyses con-
rived from the estimated Full Scale IQ) ibility IQ by using the digit span, digit trolled for age and family SES.
and the actual SAICA scaled score. We
coding, and oral arithmetic subscales
rst converted the estimated Full Scale Clinical Correlates of ADHD
of the WISC-R. Reading and arithmetic
IQ and SAICA scores to the Z scores ZIQ
achievement was assessed by using ADHD + CBCL-AT and ADHD participants
and ZS. We then estimated the expected
subtests of the Wide Range Achieve- had similar ages of ADHD onset, similar
SAICA score, ZES, by the regression
ment TestRevised.28 proportions of ADHD-associated level of
equation ZES = rIQS 3 ZIQ, where rIQS is
impairment (ie, classied as mild and
the correlation between the IQ and
Statistical Analysis moderate or severe as dened by the
SAICA scores. We used the value from
We used t tests, Pearsons x2 test, Wil- structured interview procedure and
our control sample (r = 0.25, P , .05).
relating to the impairment caused by
We then calculated the discrepancy coxon rank-sum test, and analysis of
ADHD in multiple areas of functioning
score as ZES ZS and its SD, (1 r2 variance as indicated. We controlled
as perceived by the child, or the
IQS). We dened as socially disabled for any demographic confounder that
mother, if an indirect interview was
any subject who had a value .1.65 on reached signicance at an a level of .05
conducted), similar rates of ADHD
the standardized discrepancy score, (ie, age, SES). Logistic and linear re- symptoms, similar proportions of any
ZES ZS/(1 r2IQS). gression was used in the adjusted medication treatment for ADHD, simi-
Family functioning was assessed by analyses. Given the many statistical lar family impairments (ie, expression,
using the Moos Family Environment tests computed, the .01 a level was conicts, cohesion as measured by the
Scale.24 Mothers provided information used to assert statistical signicance Moos Family Environment Scale), and
regarding their childs history of school for omnibus comparisons. All tests similar school functioning (eg, tutor-
problems (ie, grade retention, special were 2-tailed. Bonferroni corrections ing, repeated grades) (all P . .01).
placements, remedial assistance) and were used to control for chance nd- ADHD + CBCL-AT participants had in-
treatment history (ie, counseling, ings in pairwise comparisons. creased rates of placement in a special
medication, hospitalization). For ana- class (2.2% controls; 22.8% ADHD; 50%
lytic purposes, we treated this in- RESULTS ADHD + CBCL-AT; x 2[4] = 81.1, P , .001)
formation as follows: counseling (Table 1). ADHD + CBCL-AT participants
classied those who had received any Because 53 participants did not have
experienced more family conict as
type of psychosocial treatment for CBCL information, our nal sample in-
measured by the Moos Family Envi-
their ADHD; counseling + medication cluded 227 controls and 242 ADHD ronment Scale than control subjects
classied those who had received any subjects. More ADHD than control par- (ADHD + CBCL-AT: 61.5 611.2; ADHD: 56.9
type of psychosocial treatment for ticipants had a positive AT prole (44 6 12.3; F[4, 257] = 10.9; P , .001; Table 1).
their ADHD as well as any medication [18.18%] vs 2 [0.87%]; Fishers exact
There were no differences between the
treatment for their ADHD; and others test, P , .001). Because there were
ADHD + CBCL-AT and ADHD groups in
were classied as no treatment. only 2 control subjects with an AT individual DSM-III-R ADHD symptoms
Mothers also provided information re- prole, we did not include these in (Fig 1A), but ADHD + CBCL-AT partic-
garding their history of pregnancy, analyses. Comparisons were made ipants had higher rates of additional
delivery, and their childs infancy. between ADHD subjects with (ADHD + ADHD-related symptoms captured
Intellectual functioning was assessed CBCL-AT, n = 44) and without (ADHD, n = during the structured interview, in-
through the vocabulary, block design, 198) a CBCL-AT prole and controls cluding clumsiness (odds ratio [OR]:
digit span, digit symbol, digit coding, without ADHD or the CBCL-AT prole 2.9, P = .02), an illness equal in part
and arithmetic subtests of the Wechsler (controls, n = 227). inattention and hyperactivity (OR: 3.7,

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TABLE 1 Sociodemographic and Clinical Characteristics


Characteristic Controls (n = 227) ADHD (n = 198) ADHD + CBCL-AT (n = 44) Test Statistic P
Age [age range], y 11.9 6 3.4 [618] 11.0 6 3.14 [618]
a
9.8 6 2.7 [618]
a,b
F(2466) = 9.8 ,.001
Male 117 (52) 107 (54) 26 (59) x2(2) = 0.9 .6
White 213 (94) 193 (97) 44 (100) x2(2) = 5.7 .06
SES 1.59 6 0.74 1.8 6 0.95 2.18 6 1a,b x2(2) = 13.1 .001
Intactness of family 40 (18) 50 (25) 14 (32)a x2(2) = 6.2 .045
(divorced/separated)
IQ 114.2 6 11.6 108.5 6 12.6a 102 6 14.9a,b F(2, 466) = 23.2, x2(2) = 6.2 ,.001, .045
ADHD characteristics
Age of onset 2.9 6 2.4 3.0 6 1.8 F(3, 238) = 1.90, t = 0.3 .7, .97
ADHD impairment
Moderate or severec 185 (94) 43 (98) x2(3) = 6.7, Fishers exact test .083
Mean no. of symptoms 11 6 2 12 6 2 F(3, 238) = 0.8, t = 2.1 .5, .04
Treatment history
Medication (any treatment) 0 (0) 546 (278)a 10 (23)a Fishers exact test .04
Counseling + medication 0 (0) 91 (46)a 298 (664)a,b Fishers exact test ,.001
School functioning
Tutoring 52 (23) 122 (62)a 24 (55)a x2(42) = 69.768.8 ,.001
Placement in special class 5 (2) 45 (23)a 22 (50)a,b x2(42) = 79.281.1 ,.001
Repeated grade 17 (7) 53 (27)a 8 (18) a x2(42) = 31.328.4 ,.001
Family functioning (FES)
Expression 50.2 6 14.6 47.8 6 14.0 42.5 6 14.0a,b F(24, 4579) = 4.45.4 .0025
Conict 50.6 6 12.5 56.9 6 12.3a 61.5 6 11.2a,b F(42, 45760) = 10.921.3 ,.001
Cohesion 54.2 6 16.6 44.2 6 20.9a 39.4 6 21.6a F(42, 45760) = 13.019.8 ,.001
Data are presented as mean 6 SD or n (%). FES, Family Environment Scale.
a Compared with the control group.
b Compared with the ADHD group.
c Severity reected the number of symptoms endorsed and the associated difculties with them at home, in school, and in the social context.

P = .03), hyperactivity (OR: 8.9, P = .001; mood disorders, x 2 = 132.5, P , Decits in Emotion Regulation and
.04), ghts with peers (OR: 6.8, P = .001; multiple anxiety disorders, x2 = Social Disability
.002), and rejection by peers (OR: 24, 63.9, P , .001; language disorders, x2 = ADHD + CBCL-AT participants had a sig-
P = .003) (Fig 1B). 25.5, P , .001; elimination disorders, nicantly higher prevalence of the
x2 = 40.5, P , .001; and substance use CBCL severe emotional dysregulation
Pregnancy, Delivery, and Infancy prole than both ADHD and control
disorders, x2 = 20.9, P , .001). Com-
Complications participants (controls: 0%; ADHD:
pared with ADHD participants, ADHD +
ADHD + CBCL-AT mothers reported more 6.57%; ADHD + CBCL-AT: 72.73% [all P ,
CBCL-AT participants had a signicantly
infections during pregnancy (ADHD + .001]). In contrast, ADHD and ADHD +
higher prevalence of disruptive behav-
CBCL-AT: 28%; ADHD: 11%; controls: 8%; CBCL-AT participants did not differ from
iors (OR: 3.7, P = .001), mood disorders each other in the prevalence of the
x2[4] = 10.7, P = .001), switching for-
(OR: 5.4, P , .001), multiple anxiety CBCLdecient emotional self-regulation
mulas during their childrens infancies
disorders (.2) (OR: 3.7, P , .001), and prole, which assesses a lower level
(ADHD + CBCL-AT: 25%; ADHD: 9%; con-
language disorders (OR: 2.6, P = .01) of emotional dysregulation compared
trols: 6%; x2[4] = 13.6, P , .001), and
(Fig 2A). with the CBCLsevere emotional dys-
described their infants as stiffened
ADHD participants with and without ATs regulation prole. However, both groups
during infancy (ADHD + CBCL-AT: 25%;
had a signicantly higher prevalence
ADHD: 5%; controls: 1%; x 2[4] = 32, P , had signicantly more impaired scores
of the CBCLdecient emotional self-
.001) (Table 2). on each CBCL clinical and composite
regulation prole than control sub-
scale compared with controls (all P , jects (controls: 1.32%; ADHD: 38.89%;
Patterns of Psychiatric Comorbidity .001). ADHD + CBCL-AT participants had ADHD + CBCL-AT: 20.45% [all P , .001])
ADHD participants with and without ATs signicantly more impaired scores on (Fig 3A).
had signicantly higher prevalence of all CBCL clinical and composite scales
all comorbid psychiatric disorders than ADHD participants, including Social Functioning
versus control subjects (ie, disruptive scales that were not used to dene ATs Both ADHD groups had a signicantly
behavior disorders, x2 = 142.4, P , (all P , .001) (Fig 2B). higher prevalence of social disability

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FIGURE 1
ADHD symptoms in the ADHD and ADHD + CBCL-AT groups. A, DSM-III-R symptoms. B, Additional related symptoms. aCompared with the ADHD group. *P , .05;
**P , .005.

TABLE 2 Pregnancy and Infancy Characteristics (Adjusting for Age and SES)
Characteristic Controls (n = 225) ADHD (n = 188) ADHD + CBCL-AT (n = 40) Test Statistic P
Pregnancy characteristics
Excessive nausea 25 (11) 40 (21)a 10 (25)a x 2(4) = 10.4 .03
Infection 19 (8) 20 (11) 11 (28)a,b x 2(4) = 10.7 .03
High blood pressure 24 (11) 39 (21)a 11 (28)a x 2(4) = 14.1 .007
Accidents 2 (1) 9 (5)a 4 (10)a x 2(4) = 11 .003
Family problems 20 (9) 39 (21)a 12 (30)a x 2(4) = 21.2 .003
Medications 47 (21) 58 (31)a 18 (45)a x 2(4) = 13.8 .008
Smoking (3 mo at gestation) 16 (7) 27 (14)a 9 (23)a x 2(4) = 22.2 .002
Infancy characteristics
Switch formulas 13 (6) 16 (9) 10 (25)a,b x 2(4) = 13.6 .009
Crying infant 29 (13) 48 (25)a 12 (30)a x 2(4) = 13.7 .008
Stiffened infant 2 (1) 9 (5)a 10 (25)a,b x 2(4) = 32.0 ,.001
Data are presented as n (%).
a Compared with the control group.
b Compared with the ADHD group.

as dened by the SAICA (all P , .01) sures of school behavior, spare time ADHD + CBCL-AT participants had sig-
than control subjects. However, rates problems, activities and problems with nicantly more impaired scores than
were signicantly higher in ADHD + peers, and problems with siblings and ADHD participants on the CBCL social
CBCL-AT participants versus ADHD parents (all P , .001) (Fig 4A). A sim-
and total competence scales (Fig 4B).
ilar pattern was observed when ana-
participants (controls: 6.77%; ADHD:
lyzing ndings from the CBCL social Cognitive Findings
34.94%; ADHD-AT: 68.57%) (Fig 3B).
functioning scales, which consist of
ADHD + CBCL-AT participants had sig- the activities, social, and total compe- ADHD + CBCL-AT participants scored
nicantly more impaired SAICA scaled tence scales. Of these, only the social signicantly worse than ADHD partic-
scores than ADHD participants in mea- problems scale was used to dene ATs. ipants on the WISC-R Full IQ (ADHD +

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FIGURE 2
Additional related symptoms in the ADHD, ADHD + CBCL-AT, and control groups. A, Prevalence of psychiatric disorders (lifetime). B, CBCL prole. aCompared
with the control group. bCompared with the ADHD group. *P , .05; **P , .005; ***P , .001.

CBCL-AT: 101.96 6 14.90; ADHD: 108.54 6 and interpersonal decits. These re- ordered movement kinetics observed
12.55), freedom from distractibility sults are highly consistent with those of in Aspergers syndrome3336 and what
(ADHD + CBCL-AT: 92.71 6 16.11; ADHD: 3 previous reports4,6,7 that examined has been previously described in chil-
100.28 6 14.35), block design (ADHD + ATs in children with ADHD. dren with the neuropsychological pro-
CBCL-AT: 10.61 6 3.82; ADHD: 12.70 6 The current study found that ADHD le of decits in attention, motor
3.48), digit symbol scaled scores (ADHD + children with a positive AT prole do not control, and perception.3739
CBCL-AT: 8.86 6 3.99; ADHD: 10.57 6 differ from other ADHD children in the Also consistent with the extant litera-
3.13) (all P , .05), and Wisconsin Card core symptoms of ADHD, but they do ture are our ndings on the Kiddie
Sorting Test perseverative errors sub- present with a more severe clinical Schedule for Affective Disorders and
test (T scores: ADHD + CBCL-AT: 28.86 6 picture when additional and ADHD- SchizophreniaEpidemiologic Version
16.88; ADHD: 17.71 6 12.53; controls: relevant symptoms in the diagnostic showing that ADHD + AT children
15.84 6 10.92) (Fig 5). criteria are considered, including exhibited signicantly higher rates of
clumsiness, messiness, and social dif- comorbid psychiatric disorders versus
DISCUSSION culties with peers. Because these ADHD children, especially in the do-
Our ndings revealed that ATs are symptoms are commonly reported in main of disruptive behavior disorders,
present in children with ADHD, and their children with ASDs, it is possible that which included the diagnoses of con-
presence heralds a signicantly more they reect ASD tendencies as well as duct and oppositional deant disor-
compromised clinical presentation ADHD ones.2932 Of note, the presence of der.4,6 Also reecting the impairment
characterized by higher rates of psy- clumsiness in children with ADHD and observed in children with ASDs40,41
chopathological, neuropsychological, ATs may be closely related to the dis- is the nding that ADHD + CBCL-AT

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FIGURE 3
Clinical Features in the ADHD, ADHD + CBCL-AT, and control groups. A, Emotion dysregulation: CBCL AAA prole (attention + aggression + anxiety/depressed T
scores). B, Social disability. aCompared with the control group. bCompared with the ADHD group. *P , .005; ***P , .0001.

FIGURE 4
Social functioning in the ADHD, ADHD + CBCL-AT, and control groups. A, SAICA individual item scores. B, CBCL social functioning scales. aCompared with the control
group. bCompared with the ADHD group. *P , .05; **P , .005; ***P , .0001.

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FIGURE 5
Neuropsychological functioning in the ADHD, ADHD + CBCL-AT, and control groups. A, WISC-R and Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT). B, WISC-R. aCompared with
the control group. bCompared with the ADHD group. *P , .05; **P , .005; ***P , .0001.

children were more likely to have children. These ndings suggest im- higher rates of mood, anxiety, dis-
a positive CBCLsevere dysregulation pairments in executive functioning ruptive, and substance use dis-
prole versus ADHD children, in- and cognitive exibility, a pattern ob- orders,52 and school failure, school
dicating that these children experience served in other populations positive dropout, and delinquent offenses53 in
very severe behavioral, emotional, and for ATs,44,45 as well as in children with ADHD + AT children is particularly
educational problems.20,42 The high ASDs.4648 worrisome.
rates of mood dysregulation in the Also consistent with the extant litera- Our ndings that ADHD children with
ADHD + CBCL-AT children are also con- ture are our ndings showing that ADHD ATs had a higher rate of pregnancy
sistent with an emerging body of lit- + AT children were more likely than and infancy complications than other
erature documenting high rates of ADHD children to ght with and be ADHD children could suggest that
mood disorders in children with rejected by peers, to have more school prenatal and perinatal complications
ASDs.43 Further research is needed to behavior problems, more difculties alone or in combination with genetic
better understand the role ATs confer utilizing their spare time, and more risk factors could account for the
on emotion regulation in children with problems with siblings. Considering the development of ATs in some children
ADHD. well-established evidence that social with ADHD. These ndings are in-
ADHD + CBCL-AT children also had sig- difculties are a core component of triguing in light of previous reports
nicantly lower Full IQ, freedom from ASDs,4951 our ndings also suggest yielding support for the role of ma-
distractibility, block design, and digit that the social disability observed in ternal infection during pregnancy5457
symbol WISC-R scores as well as dif- the ADHD + CBCL-AT group may be and the behavioral characteris-
ferences in perseverative errors on the more a reection of underlying ATs tics of infants later classied with
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test than ADHD than the presence of ADHD itself. The ASDs.58

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The ability to identify a subgroup of Our ndings need to be viewed in light of sidering that the mean age of our
ADHD children with ATs may facilitate some limitations. Our sample did not sample at baseline was 11 years, it is not
the development of more individualized contain a comparison group of children very likely that children with a clear
clinical interventions. For instance, with a diagnosed ASD. Such a group diagnosis of ASD would have remained
special care could be made to target would be useful to determine the de- undiagnosed. Because our measure of
treatment on the domain of social dif- gree to which our ADHD + CBCL-AT co- ATs has not been validated, it is possible
culties by focusing and expanding on hort exhibits features that are similar that its external validity may be com-
the development of social skills training to the diagnostic class. However, be- promised because ndings may not
in addition to contingency management cause our primary diagnosis of interest generalize to other samples. Finally,
was ADHD impacted by traits of autism, because our sample was referred and
typically used for the psychosocial
treatment of ADHD. Scientically, this
the absence of an autism-only control largely white, our ndings may not
group does not detract from the nding generalize to community samples or
research will help inform future work
that ADHD children with ATs exhibit other ethnic groups.
targeted at identifying biomarkers
more impairments than those with
for a potentially distinct subtype of
ADHD only. Although autism was ex-
ADHD. For example, twin, family, link- CONCLUSIONS
cluded, it was done by using subject
age, and genome-wide association history as opposed to validated mea- Despite these limitations, our work
studies already suggest that ADHD and sures such as the Autism Diagnostic found that the CBCL-AT prole identies
ASD may share a common heritable Observation Schedule, Social Commu- a sizeable minority of ADHD children at
etiology.14,59 Of note, Williams et al5 nication Questionnaire, or the Social high risk for signicant morbidity and
found that rare copy number variants Responsiveness Scale, thus allowing for disability. More work is needed to
identied in ADHD subjects were sig- the possibility that some children with replicate these ndings in children with
nicantly enriched for loci implicated undiagnosed ASDs could have been and without ADHD and to further ex-
in autism. included in our sample. However, con- amine their prognostic utility.

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www.pediatrics.org/cgi/doi/10.1542/peds.2012-3947
doi:10.1542/peds.2012-3947
Accepted for publication Jun 26, 2013
Address correspondence to Joseph Biederman, MD, Clinical and Research Programs in Pediatric Psychopharmacology and Adult ADHD, Massachusetts General
Hospital, Yawkey Center for Outpatient Care, YAW-6A-6900, 32 Fruit St, Boston, MA 02114-3139. E-mail: jbiederman@partners.org
PEDIATRICS (ISSN Numbers: Print, 0031-4005; Online, 1098-4275).
Copyright 2013 by the American Academy of Pediatrics
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE: Dr Biederman is currently receiving research support from the following sources: American Professional Society of ADHD and Related
Disorders, Department of Defense, ElMindA, Janssen, McNeil, Shire, and Vaya Pharma/Enzymotec. In 2012, Dr Biederman received an honorarium from the
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Psychiatry Academy and The Childrens Hospital of Southwest Florida/Lee Memorial Health System for tuition-funded
continuing medical education (CME) courses. In 2011, Dr Biederman gave a single unpaid talk for Juste Pharmaceutical Spain, received honoraria from the MGH
Psychiatry Academy for a tuition-funded CME course, and received honoraria for presenting at an international scientic conference on attention-decit/
hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). He also received an honorarium from Cambridge University Press for a chapter publication. Dr Biederman received departmental
royalties from a copyrighted rating scale used for ADHD diagnoses, paid by Eli Lilly, Shire, and AstraZeneca; these royalties are paid to the Department of
Psychiatry at MGH. In 2010, Dr Biederman received a speakers fee from a single talk given at Fundacin Dr. Manuel Camelo A.C. in Monterrey, Mexico. Dr Biederman
provided single consultations for Shionogi Pharma Inc and Cipher Pharmaceuticals Inc; the honoraria for these consultations were paid to the Department of
Psychiatry at MGH. Dr Biederman received honoraria from the MGH Psychiatry Academy for a tuition-funded CME course. In previous years, Dr Biederman received
research support, consultation fees, or speakers fees for/from the following additional sources: Abbott, Alza, AstraZeneca, Boston University, Bristol-Myers Squibb,
Celltech, Cephalon, Eli Lilly and Co, Esai, Fundacion Areces (Spain), Forest, GlaxoSmithKline, Gliatech, Hastings Center, Janssen, McNeil, Medice Pharmaceuticals
(Germany), Merck, MMC Pediatric, National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, National Institute on Drug Abuse, New River, Eunice Kennedy
Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institute of Mental Health, Novartis, Noven, Neurosearch, Organon, Otsuka, Pzer,
Pharmacia, Phase V Communications, Physicians Academy, The Prechter Foundation, Quantia Communications, Reed Exhibitions, Shire, the Spanish Child Psychiatry
Association, The Stanley Foundation, UCB Pharma Inc, Veritas, and Wyeth. Dr Joshi receives research support from Forest Research Laboratories and Duke
University as a site principal investigator for multisite clinical trials. He is a co-investigator for clinical trials sponsored by Schering-Plough Corporation, Shire,
ElMindA, and the US Department of Defense. In 2011, Dr Joshi received research support from Shire, Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and
Development, Eli Lilly, Forest Research Laboratories, Schering-Plough Corporation, ElMindA, and the National Institute of Mental Health. In the past year, Dr Faraone
received consulting income and/or research support from Shire, Otsuka, and Alcobra and research support from the National Institutes of Health. He is also on the
clinical advisory board for Akili Interactive Laboratories. In previous years, he received consulting fees or was on advisory boards or participated in continuing
medical education programs sponsored by the following: Shire, McNeil, Janssen, Novartis, Pzer, and Eli Lilly. Dr Faraone receives royalties from books published
by Guilford Press (Straight Talk About Your Childs Mental Health) and Oxford University Press (Schizophrenia: The Facts). Dr Fried has previously received
honoraria from Shire. Drs Kotte, Uchida, Spencer, Ms Kenworthy, and Ms Woodworth have no nancial relationships relevant to this article to disclose.
FUNDING: The data acquisition from which this analysis was derived was funded by National Institute of Mental Health grants MH-41314, HD036317, and MH050657
to Dr Biederman. The manuscript and analysis of the data were indirectly supported by the Pediatric Psychopharmacology Research Council Fund. Funded by the
National Institutes of Health (NIH).
POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The authors have indicated they have no potential conicts of interest to disclose.

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Autistic Traits in Children With and Without ADHD
Amelia Kotte, Gagan Joshi, Ronna Fried, Mai Uchida, Andrea Spencer, K. Yvonne
Woodworth, Tara Kenworthy, Stephen V. Faraone and Joseph Biederman
Pediatrics 2013;132;e612; originally published online August 26, 2013;
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2012-3947
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PEDIATRICS is the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. A monthly


publication, it has been published continuously since 1948. PEDIATRICS is owned, published,
and trademarked by the American Academy of Pediatrics, 141 Northwest Point Boulevard, Elk
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Autistic Traits in Children With and Without ADHD
Amelia Kotte, Gagan Joshi, Ronna Fried, Mai Uchida, Andrea Spencer, K. Yvonne
Woodworth, Tara Kenworthy, Stephen V. Faraone and Joseph Biederman
Pediatrics 2013;132;e612; originally published online August 26, 2013;
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2012-3947

The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is
located on the World Wide Web at:
/content/132/3/e612.full.html

PEDIATRICS is the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. A monthly


publication, it has been published continuously since 1948. PEDIATRICS is owned,
published, and trademarked by the American Academy of Pediatrics, 141 Northwest Point
Boulevard, Elk Grove Village, Illinois, 60007. Copyright 2013 by the American Academy
of Pediatrics. All rights reserved. Print ISSN: 0031-4005. Online ISSN: 1098-4275.

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