Autism Spectrum Disorders: Comparison of DSM-IV/ICD-10 Diagnostic Criteria

Comparison of DSM-IV/ICD-10 Diagnostic Criteria

The DSM-IV and ICD-10 item sets and diagnostic algorithms for autistic disorder are almost identical. However, the ICD-10 exclu-sion criterion is considerably more broad, requiring that a number of other disorders should be considered instead (e.g., early-onset schizophrenia, mental retardation with an associated emotional or behavioral disorder). In ICD-10, this disorder is referred to as childhood autism.

The DSM-IV and ICD-10 item sets and diagnostic algo-rithms for Rett’s disorder and Asperger’s disorder are almost identical. In ICD-10, these disorders are referred to as Rett’s syn-drome and Asperger’s syndrome respectively.

Regarding childhood disintegrative disorder, the DSM- IV and ICD-10 item sets and diagnostic algorithms are identical except for the C criterion, in which ICD-10 also allows for a “general loss of interest in objects and the environment”. In ICD-10, this disorder is referred to as other childhood disintegrative disorder.