can a diagnosis of ASD be given without an ados?

[keepingmesane]

my younger son had an ados last year and only scored 1. they said they spotted several asd behaviours but they werent scorable. the consultant discharged him saying he did have sensory issues (the OT assessed him and he has very definate sensory issues) but was intentionally controlling everything and was copying his older siblings (even though he does completely different things to them)

 

since then he has seen two ed psychs, a behavioural advisor and a headteacher with loads of experience with asd as she ran a unit for quite a while... all saying they are 100% positive he is on the autistic spectrum

 

he has got a statement for 16 hours one to one but needs more and the teachers have said they have seen more autistic behaviour from him in the last few weeks than they saw from my older son who they had last year and scored 13 on the ados

 

im waiting for the report back from the second ed psych but i really want to go back to the consultant (who sees my other two and has said if i want him to he will see isaac again) to push for a diagnosis, but can this be done without the definitive results of an ados??

 

i understand that isaac is only 4 so its early days, but it feels so hard to wait when he needs the help and i could really do with the support as he is very physical at times

[Karen A]

Hi.

It is possible to obtain an AS diagnosis at a later point where there has not been agreement on the results of an ADOS or where professionals did not agree in the first instance.

Ben was not diagnosed as having AS three years ago because professionals could not agree.However after a 3di last year he was given an AS diagnosis.

There are a few options open to you that might be worth considering.

First of all if the consultant was not an ASD specialist you could request an assessment be done by the mult-professional team in your area who are specialists in ASD diagnosis.

There are other tools available for assessing for AS other than the ADOS.The 3di is supposed to be more able than the ADOS to assist in diagnosis of AS where the results of the ADOS were borderline or debateable.The 3di is not available in all areas.However it is possible to request a secondary referal to a specialist AS diagnostic service where local professionals cannot reach agreement.Great Ormand Street do provide the 3di in such cases however you would need a referal.

If professionals agree that the original conclusion of the ADOS may not be correct do obtain their support for further assessment.I think it is more likely that the case will be taken seriously with professional support.

As I said it took three years for Ben to be diagnosed with AS.We had weekly contact with CAMHS throughout that time.It can take time.However if professionals agree with you it is certainly worth pushing on especially if you could do with more support.

It is worth bearing in mind that the ADOS is very much based on a professional judgement which depends on observation.So it may not be accurate if the professional administering it is not an ASD specialist.