There is little written in the form of research or commentary about Down Syndrome in combination with Autism Spectrum Disorder (DS-ASD). In fact, until recently, it was commonly believed that the two conditions could not exist together. Parents were told their child had Down syndrome with a severe to profound cognitive impairment without further investigation or intervention into a diagnostic cause. Today, the medical profession recognizes that people with Down syndrome may also have a psychiatric-related diagnosis such as ASD or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

Because this philosophy is relatively new to medical and educational professionals, there is little known about children and adults with DS-ASD medically or educationally.

Signs and Symptoms

Group One

Children in this first group appear to display “atypical” behaviors early. During infancy or toddler years they may exhibit:
 

• Repetitive motor behaviors (fingers in mouth, hand flapping),
• Fascination with and staring at lights, ceiling fans, or fingers,
• Extreme food refusal,
• Receptive language problems (poor understanding and use of gestures) possibly giving the appearance that the child does not hear, and spoken language may be highly repetitive or absent
• Along with these behaviors, other medical conditions may also be present including seizures, dysfunctional swallow, nystagmus (a constant movement of the eyes), or severe hypotonia (low muscle tone) with a delay in motor skills.

If the child with Down syndrome is young, only one or a few of the behaviors listed above may be evident. This does not mean the child will necessarily progress to have autistic spectrum disorder. It does mean that they should be monitored closely and may benefit from receiving different intervention services (such as sensory integration) and teaching strategies (such as visual communication strategies or discrete trial teaching) to promote learning.

Group Two

A second group of children are usually older. This group of children experience a dramatic loss (or plateauing) in their acquisition and use of language and social-attending skills. This developmental regression may be followed by excessive irritability, anxiety, and the onset of repetitive behaviors.

This situation is most often reported by parents to occur following an otherwise “typical” course of early development for a child with Down syndrome. According to parents, this regression most often occurs between ages three to seven years.

The medical concerns and strategies for these two groups may be different. There is not enough information available to know at this time. However, regardless of how or when ASD is first discovered, children with DS-ASD have similar educational and behavioral needs once they are identified.