Asperger Syndrome (cont.)

Medical Author:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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Medical Editor:

Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD

Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD

Dr. Roxanne Dryden-Edwards is an adult, child, and adolescent psychiatrist. She is a former Chair of the Committee on Developmental Disabilities for the American Psychiatric Association, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, and Medical Director of the National Center for Children and Families in Bethesda, Maryland.

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The cause of Asperger's syndrome is unknown. A genetic component to this syndrome is likely, given that the condition has been observed to run in families. It is also likely that environmental influences play a role. Although there remain concerns among some families that vaccines and/or the preservatives in vaccines may play a role in the development of Asperger's syndrome and other autism spectrum disorders, experts have discredited this theory.

Asperger's syndrome is much more common in boys than in girls. In fact, it is 5 times more common in boys. The number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders is increasing in the U.S. Recent studies show that approximately 1 out of every 110 children has an autism spectrum disorder. It is not entirely clear whether the increase in the number of children is due to improvements and modifications in the diagnostic process and/or some degree of true increase in the incidence of the disorders themselves. Both factors likely are involved.

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