Autistic Traits and Somatic Symptom Disorders: What Is the Link?

Alterations in sensory processing, a key component of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have recently attracted increasing attention as they result in peculiar responses to sensory stimuli, possibly representing a risk factor for the development of somatic symptom disorder (SSD). Contextually, other features also associated with ASD, such as alexithymia, camouflaging and altered verbal, and non-verbal communication, have been suggested to represent risk factors for the occurrence and worsening of somatic symptomatology. The aim of this work was to review the available literature about the association between SSD and the autism spectrum. The results highlighted not only a higher prevalence of autistic features in patients suffering from SSD and a higher prevalence of reported somatic symptomatology in subjects with ASD but also how ASD subjects with co-occurrent somatic symptoms exhibit more severe autism-linked symptomatology. From the paper reviewed also emerged many shared features between the two conditions, such as alexithymia, altered sensitivity to sensory stimuli, cognitive inflexibility, intolerance of uncertainty, and an increased risk of experiencing stressful life events, which may provide an explanation for the correlation reported. Even though studies on the topic are still scant, the evidence reported suggests the importance of further assessing the correlation between the two disorders.

Comorbidity and Overlaps between Autism Spectrum and Borderline Personality Disorder: State of the Art.

Despite the relationship between Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and personality disorders (PD) still being scarcely understood, recent investigations increased awareness about significant overlaps between some PD and autism spectrum conditions. In this framework, several studies suggested the presence of similarities between BPD and ASD symptoms and traits, based on the recent literature that increasingly reported increased comorbidity rates and significant symptomatologic overlaps between the two conditions. The aim of this review is to describe the available studies about the prevalence of the association between different forms of autism spectrum (full-fledged clinical conditions as well as subthreshold autistic traits) and BPD. Despite some controversial results and lack of homogeneity in the methods used for the diagnostic assessment, the reviewed literature highlighted how subjects with BPD reported higher scores on tests evaluating the presence of AT compared to a non-clinical population and hypothesized the presence of unrecognized ASD in some BPD patients or vice versa, while also describing a shared vulnerability towards traumatic events, and a greater risk of suicidality in BPD subjects with high autistic traits. However, the specific measure and nature of this association remain to be explored in more depth.