Mothers' views on the ages of onset for four childhood disorders

The mothers of 120 consecutive children in our outpatient clinic were asked a series of questions about their views on the ages at which their children became deviant. The symptoms of autism were the earliest noted at 15 months. Those with symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or conduct disorder plus ADHD, did not separate by age of onset. The mean for both groups was the fourth year of life. Children with conduct disorder alone had a putative age of onset of six years.