Comprehensive Examination of Sociodemographic and Clinical Profiles of Adolescents Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients with autism admitted to the Aydın Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine Hospital Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Diseases Outpatient Clinic between July 2017 and July 2022. The relevant files were reviewed. The patients’ clinical characteristics included age at diagnosis of ASD, autism severity level, duration of special education, comorbid psychiatric and physical diagnoses, intelligence level, psychiatric medication use, side effects, indications for medication use, and polypharmacy. Results: Of the 118 patients, 102 were male (86.4%). The mean age of the participants was 14±1.8 years. When the clinical characteristics of the patients were analyzed, 42 (36.5%) patients had level 1 autism severity and 43 (36.4%) had intellectual disability. The most common comorbid physical disease was epilepsy (n=30, 26.1%). At least one additional psychiatric diagnosis in 63.6% of adolescents with ASD. The most common psychiatric diagnoses were attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, insomnia disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder. The most common reason for drug use was behavioral problems (aggression, harm). Regarding drug use characteristics, 92.4% of the patients had a history of at least one drug use. Multiple drug use was statistically significantly higher in patients with symptoms of irritability and aggression (p<0.001), increased sexual desire (p=0.02), and emotional lability (p<0.001). Conclusion: The need for pharmacotherapy and, in some cases, polypharmacy was observed in adolescents with ASD due to the frequency of comorbid psychiatric diagnoses, intellectual disability, epilepsy, and behavioral problems. Drug treatment options should be carefully selected considering the effect/side effect profile. It is important that pharmacotherapy is offered to the patient in an individualized model in addition to behavioral methods for behavioral problems. © 2024 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.