Catatonia in neurodevelopmental disorders: assessing catatonic deterioration from baseline

Despite the inclusion of catatonia as a specifier of autism spectrum disorder in DSM-5, we—a team of child and adolescent neuropsychiatrists who specialise in paediatric catatonia and neurodevelopmental disorders—have identified a number of issues with the diagnosis and clinical management of catatonia in our patients.

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Catatonia: A Common Cause of Late Regression in Autism

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communication deficits and restricted interests and behaviors which begin very early in life. In about a quarter of cases, the symptoms emerge about 18–24 months after a period of normal development, a phenomenon commonly described as early regression. However, marked functional decline can also occur in persons with autism after a relatively stable childhood.

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Voice of the Patient Report

This EL-PFDD meeting was modeled after the work of the FDA’s Patient Focused Drug Development (PFDD) initiative. PFDD is a systematic way of gathering patient perspectives on their condition and on available treatments. The information gathered at the meeting is presented in this Voice of the Patient report, a high-level summary of the perspectives generously shared by the families and caregivers of individuals living with PMS, who participated in the November 8, 2022, EL-PFDD meeting. The report also includes selected comments that were submitted through an online portal.

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European Consensus Recommendations on Communication, Language and Speech in Phelan-McDermid Syndrome

Phelan-McDermid syndrome is a genetic condition primarily caused by a deletion on the 22q13.3 region or a likely pathogenic/pathogenic variant of SHANK3. The main features comprise global developmental delay, marked impairment or absence of speech, and other clinical characteristics to a variable degree, such as hypotonia or psychiatric comorbidities.

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