[Neuropsychological data about children with autistic disorder and an intellectual development within what is...

Characteristic symptoms of autistic disorder (AD) can be the result of cognitive impairment which can be produced by specific neurological irregularities. Up until now a specific cognitive deficit in autism has not been found, although the majority of people with autism show intellectual impairment, verbal scores lower than manipulative measures and executive dysfunctions.

A neuropsychological evaluation of children with AD was planned. These children had intellectual abilities in the normal range. They were compared with two other groups, one with pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NS), and the other from the general population.

A battery of neuropsychological tests was carried out on five boys AD, five boys PDD-NS, and five boys of the general population. All of them were between 9 and 15 years old and their intellectual abilities were within the normal range.

The children AD obtained verbal scores lower than their visual-perception scores. They also showed good dynamic coordination of movement. Scores in episodic memory tasks where executive strategies are needed were low.

The characteristics described in the paper do not demonstrate a specific profile of the AD, but they can be useful in diagnoses and in planning treatment.