Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2008 Oct;17(4):787-801, viii-ix.
doi: 10.1016/j.chc.2008.06.010.

Developing drugs for core social and communication impairment in autism

David J Posey  1 , Craig A Erickson, Christopher J McDougle
Affiliations
Review

Developing drugs for core social and communication impairment in autism

David J Posey et al. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2008 Oct.

Abstract

There are many challenges to studying drug effects on core social and language impairment in autism. Drugs such as fenfluramine, naltrexone, and secretin do not appear to be efficacious for these core symptoms. Risperidone has led to improvement in some aspects of social relatedness when used to treat irritability in autism. More research is needed on the utility of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, cholinergic drugs, glutamatergic drugs, and oxytocin for core autistic symptoms.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Lecavalier L. Behavioral and emotional problems in young people with pervasive developmental disorders: relative prevalence, effects of subject characteristics, and empirical classification. J Autism Dev Disord. 2006 Nov;36(8):1101–1114. - PubMed
    1. Aman MG, Lam KS, Van Bourgondien ME. Medication patterns in patients with autism: temporal, regional, and demographic influences. J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol. 2005 Feb;15(1):116–126. - PubMed
    1. Bailey A, Le Couteur A, Gottesman I, et al. Autism as a strongly genetic disorder: evidence from a British twin study. Psychol Med. 1995 Jan;25(1):63–77. - PubMed
    1. Redcay E, Courchesne E. When is the brain enlarged in autism? A meta-analysis of all brain size reports. Biol Psychiatry. 2005;58(1):1–9. - PubMed
    1. Schultz RT, Chawarska K, Volkmar F. The social brain in autism: perspectives from neuropsychology and neuroimaging. In: Moldin SO, R JLR, editors. Understanding Autism: from basic neuroscience to treatment. CRC Press; Boca Raton, FL: 2006. pp. 323–348.

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances