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- Title
Autistic Traits and Somatic Symptom Disorders: What Is the Link?
- Authors
Carpita, Barbara; Nardi, Benedetta; Tognini, Valeria; Poli, Francesca; Amatori, Giulia; Cremone, Ivan Mirko; Pini, Stefano; Dell'Osso, Liliana
- Abstract
Alterations in sensory processing, a key component of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have recently attracted increasing attention as they result in peculiar responses to sensory stimuli, possibly representing a risk factor for the development of somatic symptom disorder (SSD). Contextually, other features also associated with ASD, such as alexithymia, camouflaging and altered verbal, and non-verbal communication, have been suggested to represent risk factors for the occurrence and worsening of somatic symptomatology. The aim of this work was to review the available literature about the association between SSD and the autism spectrum. The results highlighted not only a higher prevalence of autistic features in patients suffering from SSD and a higher prevalence of reported somatic symptomatology in subjects with ASD but also how ASD subjects with co-occurrent somatic symptoms exhibit more severe autism-linked symptomatology. From the paper reviewed also emerged many shared features between the two conditions, such as alexithymia, altered sensitivity to sensory stimuli, cognitive inflexibility, intolerance of uncertainty, and an increased risk of experiencing stressful life events, which may provide an explanation for the correlation reported. Even though studies on the topic are still scant, the evidence reported suggests the importance of further assessing the correlation between the two disorders.
- Subjects
SENSORY disorders; AUTISM spectrum disorders; LIFE change events; SYMPTOMS; NONVERBAL communication; SENSORIMOTOR integration
- Publication
Brain Sciences (2076-3425), 2024, Vol 14, Issue 3, p274
- ISSN
2076-3425
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/brainsci14030274