How Does Asperger Syndrome Differ From Autistic Disorder?

Dr. McGee answers the question: 'Asperger Syndrome vs. Autistic Disorder?'

By
Gail McGee, Ph.D., Director, Emory Autism Center, Emory University School of Medicine
October 8, 2008, 11:01 AM ET
1 min read

Oct. 23, 2008 -- Question: How does Asperger syndrome differ from autistic disorder?

Answer: Both Asperger disorder and autistic disorder -- they're actually two of the five subtypes on the autism spectrum disorder. The essential difference between Asperger disorder and autistic disorder is that with Asperger disorder there is no language delay, meaning a child had meaningful words by 2 [years old] and phrase speech by 3 [years old]. And there's also no cognitive delay.