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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous] I think it depends which professional you talk to. I have posted before. My son was diagnosed with MERLD and I was pretty much told down the line that some professionals use MERLD and ASD interchangeably because the interventions are the same. Often you can get more services in school with the ASD diagnosis. In the end it doesn't matter. Your goal is to get as much intervention as possible tailored to your child's individual needs and both that varies more from child to child than from ASD to MERLD.

The most interesting thing I was told was brain scans of those with ASD and MERLD were similar, but I didn't do a lit search so not sure if that was anecdotal.

The DSM is ever evolving. They used to have Aspergers as a separate diagnosis too. Many years ago I believe I read homosexuality was considered a disorder as per DSM early editions. A group of professionals meet and make adjustments. It is not carved in stone. [/quote]

They are not the same nor are services.   ASD has an Aba focus for services, MERLD has a speech therapy focus.  They are very different. Our ABA therapist ended up doing very basic speech and did not really understand the complexity of it so it was more play than anything, which of course is not real ABA.  Speech therapy for a true MERLD kid is far better.  The advantage of an autism diagnosis is most insurances will pay Aba, speech, ot and pt.  with a language disorder, few pay.  Kids with MERLD can show with autism quirks early on but the difference is MERLD kids often outgrow them vs. they stay but may change form as kids grow older. Having the right diagnosis and understanding it, helps parents get better services catered to their child's needs

Many people do not understand language disorders and anyone lumping the, in as ASD should not be diagnosing.  Diagnosing is not an exact science.  It is a guessing game where kids have to fit in checkboxes, sadly.   [/quote]

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