WHODAS-Child: psychometric properties of the WHODAS 2.0 for children and youth among Italian children with autism spectrum disorder.

PURPOSE: A contribution to the Italian adaptation of the original English version of the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 for children and youth (WHODAS-Child), proxy-administered among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) without intellectual disability. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Observational and retrospective study with within-dependent variables by cross-sectional sampling on psychometric properties (internal consistency and construct/criterion validity) of the 36- and 7-item versions of the Italian WHODAS-Child. The original English version was translated into Italian, also considering the Italian version of the WHODAS 2.0 for adults. The Italian questionnaire was then translated back into English. All authors compared the original and back-translated English versions. The sample was collected among parents and clinicians of 100 children with ASD. To assess convergent/divergent validity, the Autism Diagnostic Observational Schedule (ADOS) was also administered. RESULTS: Cronbach's α for both versions' total scores was good. WHODAS-Child also showed a positive correlation with the three DSM-5 levels of impairment. A pattern of correlations with the ADOS was found for all domains of the WHODAS-Child except for the mobility and self-care domains. CONCLUSIONS: The WHODAS-Child Italian proxy-administered version has the potential to be a reliable and valid tool to measure functional impairment in children with ASD. Implications for rehabilitationWorld Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 for children and youth (WHODAS-Child) has shown to be sensitive in detecting children and youth functioning in the domains of activity and participation.WHODAS-Child Italian version seems to be a reliable and valid tool to measure the functional impairment in children with autism spectrum disorder.A critical issue for rehabilitation is that a single "minimal clinically important difference" score for the WHODAS-Child has not yet been established.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Adaptive Functions: A Study of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and/or Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Introduction: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are the two most common neurodevelopmental disorders observed in childhood. The DSM-5 accepts a combined diagnosis of ADHD and ASD, while the DSM-IV did not. The aim of this study was to identify and evaluate the adaptive profile of children and adolescents with a diagnosis of comorbid ADHD and ASD, in comparison with adaptive functioning in subjects with a diagnosis of only ASD or ADHD. Materials and Methods: Ninety-one children (77 boys, 14 girls), aging from 3.1 to 13.4 years (mean age: 8.3 ± 7.2), who met the criteria for a diagnosis of ASD and/or ADHD were enrolled. A neuropsychological evaluation involving cognitive and adaptive assessment was conducted using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule - Second Edition (ADOS-2), the Conners' Parent Rating Scale - Revised: Long Version (CPRS-R), the Wechsler Intelligence Scale - Fourth Edition or the Griffiths Mental Developmental Scales - Extended Revised, the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scale - Second Edition (VABS-II). Conclusion: As to the adaptive skills in the three groups evaluated, a worse general profile was ascertained in the ASD and in ASD plus ADHD groups in comparison with respect to the ADHD-only group. With VABS-II evaluation, we found significant differences among the three groups across all domains and combined scores: Communication (F = 18.960; p < 0.001), Socialization (F = 25.410; p < 0.001), Daily Living Skills (F = 19.760; p < 0.001), Motor (F = 9.615; p < 0.001), and Adaptive behavior composite [ABC] (F = 29.370; p < 0.001). Implications of neurodevelopmental double diagnosis such as ASD plus ADHD are discussed.