Centre of Autism South-Limburg

Abstract—The present study examined the prevalence of comorbid anxiety symptoms in 44 children with pervasive developmental disorders. Parents of the children were inter-viewed using the Anxiety Disorders section of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children. Results indicated that severe anxiety symptoms are highly prevalent in children with pervasive developmental disorders: 84.1 % of the children met the full criteria for at least one anxiety disorder. Furthermore, 72.7 % of the children displayed ritualistic behaviors. Implications of the findings are discussed. 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994, p. 65) defines pervasive de-velopmental disorders (PDD) as disorders that are ‘‘characterized by severe and pervasive impairment in several areas of development: reciprocal social interaction skills, communication skills, or the presence of stereotyped behavior, interests, and activities.’ ’ Apart from these core features, PDD children fre-quently present a variety of other, less specific, emotional and behavioral prob