Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just want to chime in to say that the "fMRI" appearance is not really relevant. fMRI is far from diagnostic of anything psychiatric/psychological yet and is rife with problems. http://www.wired.com/2009/09/fmrisalmon/

Plus, if the ASD and MERLD brains show similarities on fMRI in language processing, all that really shows is that these kids can have simlilar language processing issues. (Which nobody seems to be disagreeing with here.)

Anyway, I think what is going on here is two, true things:

1) ASD parents are legitimately incensed that ASD has a stigma such that people say "anything but ASD"
2) ASD misdiagnosis/overdiagnosis is a real thing and SN parents are legitimately incensed that people want to misdiagnose their kid.

Nope. The only person who feels that way on this thread seems to be MERLD mom who called a PP's child with ASD/ADHD a "nightmare". MERLD mom feels that an ASD diagnosis means the child is doomed forever while a child with MERLD will completely grow out of all their issues.

I have a child with ASD/ADHD who is doing great He is a child who any parent would be proud of SNs and all. Have never felt "anything but ASD" (or ADHD) since that is part of what makes DS who he is.

Anonymous wrote:I just want to chime in to say that the "fMRI" appearance is not really relevant. fMRI is far from diagnostic of anything psychiatric/psychological yet and is rife with problems. http://www.wired.com/2009/09/fmrisalmon/

Plus, if the ASD and MERLD brains show similarities on fMRI in language processing, all that really shows is that these kids can have simlilar language processing issues. (Which nobody seems to be disagreeing with here.)

Anyway, I think what is going on here is two, true things:

1) ASD parents are legitimately incensed that ASD has a stigma such that people say "anything but ASD"
2) ASD misdiagnosis/overdiagnosis is a real thing and SN parents are legitimately incensed that people want to misdiagnose their kid.

Anonymous wrote:I just want to chime in to say that the "fMRI" appearance is not really relevant. fMRI is far from diagnostic of anything psychiatric/psychological yet and is rife with problems. http://www.wired.com/2009/09/fmrisalmon/

Plus, if the ASD and MERLD brains show similarities on fMRI in language processing, all that really shows is that these kids can have simlilar language processing issues. (Which nobody seems to be disagreeing with here.)

Anyway, I think what is going on here is two, true things:

1) ASD parents are legitimately incensed that ASD has a stigma such that people say "anything but ASD"
2) ASD misdiagnosis/overdiagnosis is a real thing and SN parents are legitimately incensed that people want to misdiagnose their kid.

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Anonymous wrote: 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.

Of course, they are similar. Lots of kids with ASD have receptive language disorder and expressive language disorder as part of their ASD. That is going to look exactly like the language deficits that kids with MERLD have.

Huh? No, MERLD and ASD are not similar. Kids can be both, but they are not inclusive. You can have expressive and receptive issues without ASD. It looks different as the children present very differently. With just MERLD, most kids outgrow the concerns as the language progresses, with ASD, they often remain. MERLD kids do not have the same struggles when they are older as ASD. But, if it makes you feel better to lump all these kids together, go for it.

I spent a lot of time reading everything that I could on MERLD, when my son was diagnosed with MERLD. The evidence doesn't agree with you. Here's why you are wrong:

1. If kids have deficits in receptive speech and expressive speech, it is going to look very similar on an fMRI, regardless of the diagnosis. Kids with ASD also have other problems, and that may show up in other areas on an fMRI, but the shared language issues make them look similar.

2. Kids with MERLD and ASD present similarly, especially if the MERLD is severe or the ASD is high functioning. That is why the differential diagnosis can be difficult, and many professionals have a hard time doing it. That's why lots of people recommending going to the Camaratas. They have a lot of experience making that differential diagnosis.

3. Kids with MERLD have on-going deficits, even as adults. I posted the research on another thread. Go read it. In general, I agree that their prognosis is better as a group than the prognosis for kids with ASD, but they aren't going to outgrow MERLD and become NT. They aren't all going to do better than all kids with ASDs, either.

Your child does not have MERLD and was improperly diagnosed from what you have said. What experience do you have going to the Camarata's? What other issues do you feel my child currently has? You are rambling about "research" quoting others of what you found off the internet. You have no true experience and sadly do not even understand the differences in MERLD vs. ASD and what the impact of each diagnosis is. Your kid sounds like a nightmare with ADHD and ASD, but not all of our kids are remotely like that.

Excuse me? I'm 14:32 again, not the pp you quoted, but my child also has ADHD and ASD and he is not a nightmare. So fuck you for suggesting that somehow certain diagnoses are "nightmares."

Ugh, yeah. You are a terrible person, honestly, for coming on special needs and calling a large subset of kids on here - it's a common diagnosis pattern - nightmares. What is wrong with you? Stay on your Facebook page I guess. Go away.

What is your problem? All you can do is bash others? Belittle others? Insist that their children are similar to yours - ADHD and ASD when some may be similar, but the MERLD kids are very different? What do you think you are contributing by insisting that ASD is MERLD and all kids are the same? What kind of reaction are you looking for? These kids are not all similar and should not be treated similarly.

Nobody has said this. Not one person.

What has been said and what you refuse to understand is that expressive language delays and receptive language delays occur in many kids with ASD and all kids with MERLD. They look similar on an fMRI. The differential diagnosis can be difficult in younger children. Outcomes for both ASD and MERLD can be good or bad, depending on the particular child.

I agree with this pp, but would add that outcomes are people needing "more support" or "less support," not "good" or "bad." A child who grows up to need more support is not a "nightmare" child or a "bad" outcome.