Mohammad Reza Mohammadi
1, Nastaran Ahmadi
2, Ali Khaleghi
1, Hadi Zarafshan
1*, Seyed-Ali Mostafavi
1, Koorosh Kamali
3, Mehdi Rahgozar
4, Ameneh Ahmadi
1, Zahra Hooshyari
1, Seyyed Salman Alavi
1, Alia Shakiba
1, Maryam Salmanian
1, Parviz Molavi
5, Nasrin Sarraf
6, Seyed Kaveh Hojjat
7, Soleiman Mohammadzadeh
8, Shahrokh Amiri
9, Soroor Arman
10, Ahmad Ghanizadeh
111 Psychiatry and Psychology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2 Yazd Cardiovascular Research Center, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
3 Department of Public Health, School of Public Health, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran
4 Department of Biostatistics, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran
5 Department of Psychiatry, Fatemi Hospital, Ardabil University of Medical Science, Ardabil, Iran
6 Department of Child and Adolescent psychiatry, School of Medicine, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran
7 Addiction and Behavioral Sciences Research center, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran
8 Department of Psychiatry, Neuroscience Research Center, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran
9 Research Center of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
10 Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
11 Department of Psychiatry, Hafez Hospital, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Abstract
Background: There is no clear picture regarding the prevalence rates of autism and its comorbidities among Iranian children and adolescents. The present study aimed to estimate these rates as part of a large national population-based study on epidemiology of psychiatric disorders in Iranian children and adolescents.
Methods: The total sample consisted of 31000 children and adolescents between 6 to 18 years of age. The Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Present and Life time version (K-SADS-PL) was used as the diagnostic tool.
Results: The prevalence of autism in the total sample is equal to 0.1% (10 per 10000), with a 2:1 male-to-female ratio. In total, 86% of people with autism had at least one comorbid condition. Intellectual disability, epilepsy, enuresis and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with prevalence rates of 70.3%, 29.7%, 27% and 21.62%, respectively, were the most prevalent comorbid conditions in people with autism. Maternal personality disorders were also shown to be associated with increasing risk of autism.
Conclusion: The present study shows high prevalence rates for autism and its comorbid conditions among Iranian children and adolescents. It also reveals that there is a relationship between some maternal psychiatric disorders and the risk of autism.