Pervasive Developmental Disorders

Pervasive Developmental Disorders is the somewhat outdated "official" term for Autism Spectrum Disorders. While the DSM-IV still lists "PDD-NOS" (Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified) as a recognized disorder, PDD is becoming increasingly disfavored, and these disorders may be officially renamed in the next edition of the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychological Association).

The term Pervasive Developmental Disorders was originally coined because the symptoms of these disorders include deficits in such a wide-ranging array of skills and abilities. The PDD disorders (autism, Aperger Syndrome, Rett Disorder, Fragile X Syndrome and PDD-NOS) share symptoms in the following areas: a) impaired social interaction - affected individuals generally have trouble behaving normally toward others; b) deficits in verbal and nonverbal communication - in some cases, patients may have virtually no communication skills, in other cases, like Aperger Syndrome, patients may only have trouble with symbolic/metaphorical and emotional/non-verbal communication; and c) repetitive behaviors or interests - often including 'self-stimulating' behavior like rocking or head-banging, or strong attachments to certain objects or subjects.

Over time though, it was increasingly felt that the PDD label did not adequately express the great variety in symptoms and severity expressed from one individual to another. Some patients were much less "pervasively" disadvantaged than others. The term Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is generally preferred today, because it draws attention away from the incorrect idea that all patients are broadly affected by these disorders, and focuses on the more accurate perception that the disorders themselves are highly variable, with relatively little consistent symptomology outside a few very general areas of effect.

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