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High-functioning autism (HFA) is a term applied to people with autism who are deemed to be cognitively "higher functioning" (with an IQ of greater than 70) than other people with autism. Individuals with HFA or Asperger syndrome exhibit deficits in areas of communication, emotion recognition and expression, and social interaction. HFA is not a recognized diagnosis in the DSM-IV-TR or the ICD-10. The amount of overlap between HFA and Asperger syndrome is disputed. ==Characterization== High-functioning autism is characterized by features very similar to those of Asperger syndrome. The defining characteristic most widely recognized by current psychologists is a significant delay in the development of early speech and language skills before the age of 3 years.〔 The diagnosis criteria of Asperger syndrome exclude a general language delay.〔(Asperger's Disorder ) – ''Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders'' Fourth edition Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) American Psychiatric Association (2000)〕 Further differences in features between people with high-functioning autism and those with Asperger syndrome include the following:〔〔(T. Attwood, Is There a Difference Between Asperger's Syndrome and High Functioning Autism? )〕 * People with HFA have a lower verbal intelligence quotient * Better visual/spatial skills (higher performance IQ) than people with Asperger syndrome * Less deviating locomotion than people with Asperger syndrome * People with HFA more often have problems functioning independently * Curiosity and interest for many different things, in contrast to people with Asperger syndrome * People with Asperger syndrome are better at empathizing with another * The male to female ratio of 4:1 for HFA is much smaller than that of Asperger syndrome Individuals with autism spectrum disorders, including high-functioning autism, have a very high risk of developing symptoms of anxiety. While anxiety is one of the most commonly occurring mental health symptoms, children and adolescents with high functioning autism are at an even greater risk of developing symptoms. There are many other comorbidities, or the presence of one or more disorders in addition to the primary disorder, associated with high-functioning autism. Several of these comorbid symptoms are internalized within the individual affected by HFA. Some of these include depression, bipolar disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). In particular the link between HFA and OCD, has been studied. When observing the connection between HFA and OCD, both have abnormalities associated with serotonin. Several other comorbidities associated with HFA are external. These external symptoms include ADHD, Tourette syndrome, and possibly criminal behavior. While the association between HFA and criminal behavior is not completely characterized, several studies have shown that the features associated with HFA may increase the possibility of engaging in criminal behavior.〔 While there is still a great deal of research that needs to be done in this area, recent studies on the correlation between HFA and criminal actions suggest that there is a need to understand the attributes of HFA that may lead to violent behavior. There have been several case studies that link the lack of empathy and social naïveté associated with HFA to criminal actions. HFA is not accompanied with intellectual disabilities. This characteristic distinguishes HFA from the autism spectrum; between 40 and 55% of individuals with autism also have an intellectual disability. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「High-functioning autism」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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