5 Outdated Autism Diagnoses

Autism is a "spectrum disorder," meaning that the diagnosis includes autistic people with a wide range of mild, moderate, or intense traits. Despite the nuances involved in the disorder, anyone with autism traits receives the same diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This has been true since 2013, when the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) was published.

Prior to that, the DSM-IV recognized five autism spectrum diagnoses that are no longer used, including Asperger's syndrome, pervasive developmental disorder, pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), Rett syndrome, and childhood disintegrative disorder.

While ASD is now the official diagnosis and used for insurance coding purposes, healthcare providers may still use one of the previously recognized diagnoses in a patient's medical records.

Here is an explanation of what these outdated diagnoses meant and how specific autism traits are accounted for within the broader ASD diagnosis.

To help narrow down the all-encompassing diagnosis of ASD, the DSM-5 identifies three levels of the disorder. Those with level 1 are the highest functioning (often called autism with low support needs), with levels 2 and 3 indicating moderate and higher support needs, respectively.

Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)

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Pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) was a general term that described a group of disorders of development of socialization and communication; PDD included the other diagnoses discussed in this article. As such, it was roughly equivalent to autism spectrum disorder, and the DSM-5 replaced PDD with ASD.

In other words, PDD, like ASD, encompassed a range of language, social, and behavioral differences ranging from mild to intense traits.

Asperger's Syndrome

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Asperger's syndrome was the diagnosis given to people with low support needs, considered to be at the highest-functioning end of the autism spectrum. Per the DSM-5, someone with traits in keeping with an Asperger's diagnosis would be diagnosed with level 1 ASD.

Autistic kids with this diagnosis develop language skills on the same timeline as their neurotypical peers but have difficulties with appropriate social communication. These problems become more obvious as they get older and social expectations increase. Children with ASD often have sensory issues as well.

Many autistic people continue to identify as having Asperger's syndrome because they feel it's a useful term in describing a very specific group of people.

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder

A diagnosis of childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD) was given to children with a rare, late-onset autism with intense traits. Using DSM-5 terminology, CDD would be considered "low-functioning autism," or ASD level 3.

Level 3 ASD applies to all children who have high support needs and intense challenges with language (including being completely nonverbal), social function, and sometimes motor skills. However, CDD was used to describe a specific group of children who developed typically until around age 3 and then—sometimes suddenly—lost most or all of those acquired abilities and skills.

Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS)

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Pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) described children who didn't fully fit the criteria for other specific autism diagnoses (such as Asperger's syndrome) but still had some autism traits. Essentially, PDD-NOS was a "catchall" term for disorders with autism-like traits that didn't fit the full criteria of another diagnosis.

Because there was no easy way to define the traits of PDD-NOS, which may range from very mild to very intense, the diagnostic category no longer exists. A new diagnosis introduced in the DSM-5, social (pragmatic) communication disorder, may become a similar catchall category. 

Rett Syndrome

Rett syndrome is a genetic disorder that primarily affects girls. Because the syndrome can include autism-like traits, it was included in the DSM-IV. The DSM-5 no longer recognizes Rett syndrome; it can be diagnosed with the help of a blood test, hence it is considered a physical disorder.

Children with Rett syndrome develop numerous physical symptoms, such as seizures, and a profound inability to use their hands usefully.

8 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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  2. King BH, Navot N, Bernier R, Webb SJ. Update on diagnostic classification in autism. Curr Opin Psychiatry. 2014 Mar;27(2):105-9. doi: 10.1097/YCO.0000000000000040

  3. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Pervasive developmental disorders information page.

  4. Giles DC. 'DSM-V is taking away our identity': the reaction of the online community to the proposed changes in the diagnosis of Asperger's disorderHealth (London). 2014;18(2):179-195. doi:10.1177/1363459313488006

  5. Charan SH. Childhood disintegrative disorderJ Pediatr Neurosci. 2012;7(1):55-57. doi:10.4103/1817-1745.97627

  6. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. About Autism.

  7. Topal Z, Demir samurcu N, Taskiran S, et al. Social communication disorder: A narrative review on current insights. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018;14:2039-2046. doi:10.2147/NDT.S121124

  8. RettSyndrome.org. FAQs.

By Lisa Jo Rudy
Lisa Jo Rudy, MDiv, is a writer, advocate, author, and consultant specializing in the field of autism.