Older Autistic People Need More Help After Years Of Misdiagnosis, Review Finds

Researchers person called for amended support for middle-aged and older autistic group aft a reappraisal recovered that 90% of autistic group aged complete 50 successful Britain are either undiagnosed aliases misdiagnosed.

Greater consciousness of autism and improved assessments globally mean it is typically spotted successful puerility today. But successful past decades autistic group were often forced to navigate mediate and aged property without nan support a test tin unlock.

The reappraisal into ageing crossed nan autism spectrum recovered that group successful nan UK faced wide difficulties pinch employment, relationships and milestone events specified arsenic menopause and retirement. They consistently suffered from poorer intelligence and beingness health.

“Autistic children turn into autistic adults and we cognize that they are much apt to person higher rates of astir beingness and intelligence wellness problems,” said Dr Gavin Stewart, co-lead of nan Re:Spect Lab astatine King’s College London and lead writer of nan review. “People often request a diagnosis, aliases request to recognise it wrong themselves, to beryllium capable to inquire for due thief and support.”

As portion of nan review, Stewart and Prof Francesca Happé, besides astatine King’s, re-analysed UK healthcare records from 2018. By comparing rates of autism successful middle-aged and older group pinch nan 1% nationalist prevalence recognised today, they estimate that successful nan UK 89% of autistic group aged 40 to 59, and 97% of those aged 60 and over, are undiagnosed.

While world autism rates person risen successful caller decades – successful 2022, 1 successful each 31 Americans nether nan property of 8 were recovered to person nan information – nan inclination is mostly attributed to a broadening of nan meaning and improvements successful diagnoses, alternatively than a genuine summation successful nan percent of group affected.

The researchers went connected to analyse really autistic and non-autistic group fared passim life. The erstwhile had higher rates of a multitude of conditions ranging from worry and slump to cardiovascular illness and neurological disorders, they found.

Among nan astir troubling findings were higher rates of suicidal thoughts and self-harm successful older autistic people, and a greater consequence of early onset dementia.

Average life expectancy differed by six years, pinch autistic group surviving to 75 years old, compared pinch 81 years aged for non-autistic people, but these figures could beryllium skewed by nan mediocre test rates. Details are published successful nan Annual Review of Developmental Psychology.

“We request to understand really ageing impacts autistic group to amended understand what benignant of tailored thief and support they would really use from,” Stewart said. “These are each things that nan [autism] organization needs to beryllium consulted on.”

Autism varies from personification to person, but doctors look for halfway characteristics erstwhile assessing people. These see differences successful societal connection and rigid and repetitive behaviours.

The differences successful connection tin lead group to go socially isolated. This, alongside nan stigmatisation that galore autistic group face, tin raise nan consequence of intelligence and beingness wellness problems. It tin besides make it harder for autistic group to find group to attack for thief and support.

According to nan review, older autistic group were much apt to look challenges successful coping pinch awesome life events specified arsenic arranging residential care.

“If you are going from moving 9 to 5 each of your moving life to abruptly not, that could person a existent effect connected you,” Stewart said. “And if you’re going into a attraction location wherever you’re abruptly forced into situations that you wouldn’t typically acquisition successful your ain home, that has a large impact.”

He added: “If an autistic personification is having much difficulties passim their life, erstwhile they scope these points they tin beryllium existent breaking points. That’s wherever support would beryllium really beneficial.”

Tim Nicholls, astatine nan National Autistic Society, said: “This investigation intelligibly shows what we already cognize and perceive astir each time – location are precocious numbers of undiagnosed autistic adults and going done life without a test has a awesome effect connected galore aspects of their lives.

“Autism assessments tin beryllium nan first measurement to knowing people’s needs and a test tin beryllium life changing and, successful immoderate cases, lifesaving. Autistic group and their families look a changeless conflict for support and acold excessively often this starts pinch agelong waits for a diagnosis.

“The authorities must supply urgent backing for test services and make judge autistic group and families get nan support they request erstwhile they request it.”