Is ADOS always used to diagnose asd?

[Catsdontcare]

Is it unusual to get a diagnosis without ados being carried out?

Not sure but I've had letter today saying dd will be put in for ados to assess for mild autistic spectrum conditions. I think they like to use it

No, my DS got a dx without ADOS. But he was 9 at the time....

we had to have the ADOS to get a dx - paed would not do it without.

no ADOS here but DS is severe so dont know if that makes any difference,

I was wondering something similar. My Ds is 10.6 and I was wondering if there is a cut off age for the ADOS test. DS is due to be assessed in the next few months and I am a bit worried that he sort of knows the way he is supposed to respond as opposed to his responses being instinctive . I suppose that?s where parental input comes in but just wondering about the age thing. I know that there is a module for children who are non verbal/young but not sure for older verbal children. Sorry to hijack

I would put ds at the higher functioning end of the spectrum I guess so was a little surprised they diagnosed without ados although the paed seemed to think a clear diagnosis could be given without it.

Not in denial or anything about whether or not he has it, just everything seems so vague as to where he actually is on the spectrum and what interventions/therapies would be most useful to him. So much info out there and conflicting advice!

Although they say ados is a gold standard thing is like to know how they can tell that a child has asd from just being generally delayed. So if a child has delayed speech that will go against them in ados but what if its just part of an overall delay? Ive read a bit about it and it doesn't seem so foolproof to me. I'm sure an NT toddler having a bad day could fail the ados most likely and I know that high functioning kids regularly pass it

Dd3[9] was dxed without the ADOS, the paed was supposed to do it but never did, then she was handed on to CAMHS and the psychiatrist did a DISCO assessment instead which is mostly done by questions for parents right back to when they were tiny.

No ADOS here either, DS was 11 at time of dx.

everything seems so vague as to where he actually is on the spectrum and what interventions/therapies would be most useful to him. - The NHS won't advise you on interventions and therapies.

You need us for that :)

Too true indigo!! I'm beginning to think you guys could give any health professional a run for their money!

you may find this article of interest How many tests does it take to diagnose autism? which is included in my Autism ASD links list

My son passed the ADOS test ..yet still has diagnosis of ASD.

There are 4 different modules of ADOS from nonverbal toddler to adult. It is used a lot, but clinical judgement matters too. And other tests (ADI, DISCO, are also used.

Diagnosing issues on the Autistic spectrum is not an exact science it is more a subjective observation of specific behavior traits.
According to research the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) are the gold standard tests. There are many others and some are not reliable.
Currently there are no specific neurological or specific genetic tests available although eventually research will provide such procedures.

Another major issue is the debate as to the specific underlying causes of the behaviour traits which currently define ASD. There are many issues which are considered to the co-morbid multiple causes of ASD, which are already identified as individual conditions such as ADHD, Specific Language Impairment (SLI) Scotopic Senitivity Syndrome (SSS), Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), Pragmatic Language Impairment, etc. And such is the areas of overlap that in many cases it is not always possible to easily identify and diagnose the precise problems.

Researchers have been discussing that when they eventually do have the technology to provide a precise diagnosis, there will be many autisms rather than a single ASD diagnosis.