Citation

Canitano R. J. Neural. Transm. 2006; 113(3): 425-431.

Affiliation

Division of Child Neuropsychiatry, University General Hospital of Siena, Italy. r.canitano@ao-siena.toscana.it

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s00702-005-0337-x

PMID

16075185

Abstract

Self injurious behavior (SIB) is frequent in autistic spectrum disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the phenomenology of SIB in a group of children with autistic disorder, and to test whether treatment with risperidone might reduce it. A group of eleven children diagnosed with autistic disorder according to the DSM-IV criteria (mean age 8.7+/-2.2 ys) and with severe SIB were recruited for an open study of six months of treatment with risperidone. The Yale-Paris Self-Injurious Behavior Scale was used to delineate the clinical characteristics and as an outcome measure. Head-hitting and hand biting were the most frequent forms of self aggression observed. Nine children presented a mild improvement in SIB and 2 did not show any variation. A decrease in Yale-Paris Self Injurious Behavior Scale score (from M 15.1+/-1.4 to 13.3+/-1.4) was noted mainly due to the reduction of frequency. Side effects of risperidone were not severe.

Language: en