Further evidence for a low body weight in male children and adolescents with Asperger's disorder

The study explores the common clinical impression and previously reported f inding by Hebebrand et al. (7) of reduced body weight in male children and adolescents with Asperger's disorder (AD). Body weight and height of 36 con secutively admitted male patients with AD were retrospectively assessed for the calculation of body mass indices (BMI, kg/m(2)). The BMIs were transfo rmed to percentile ranks and plotted into BMI-centiles representative for t he German population. In addition, comorbid psychopathology was assessed to explore a possible relationship between associated psychopathology and bod y weight. The mean BMI-centile of all patients was 34.7 +/- 31.8 and, thus, differed significantly from the mean centile of an age- and gender-matched psychiatric control group, which was 52.7 +/- 28.3. Thirteen patients had a BMI below the 10th centile and five even below the third. Three of the la tter presented with disturbed eating behaviour. Altogether four patients sh owed disturbed eating behaviour. They had a significantly lower mean BMI-ce ntile than the rest of the group. The BMI-centiles of patients with other a dditional psychopathology did not differ significantly from the mean percen tile of the whole cohort. The results clearly show an increased risk for un derweight and disturbed eating behaviour in patients with Asperger's disord er which should be evaluated in further studies.