DOMAINS OF THE CHILDHOOD AUTISM RATING-SCALE - RELEVANCE FOR DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

The Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) was factor analyzed. Three fa ctors emerged: Social Impairment (SI), Negative Emotionality (NE), and Distorted Sensory Response (DSR). Unit-weight factor scales showed mo derate-to-good internal consistency. Cross-sectional analyses demonstr ated that autistic (AUT) subjects were distinguished from subjects wit h pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) and nonpervasive development al disorders (NPDD) by higher scores on SI. An SI cutoff score of 26 c lassified individuals as autistic vs. nonautistic with 78% accuracy. L ongitudinal analyses showed that DSR was stable over 6 months of treat ment, with little indication of symptom reduction. SI decreased over t ime across the diagnostic groups, but still showed significant continu ity over the period. NE was most malleable and apparently sensitive to the effects of treatment.