In a study of 30 children and adolescents with ASD, lithium treatment showed improvement in 43% of ASD patients, especially in those who exhibit two or more mood disorder symptoms [13].
Studies suggest that anti-seizure, mood-stabilizing medications such as valproic acid may be a safer treatment for those with autism. We've also seen success with a combination of a mood-stabilizing medicine and a low dose of an antipsychotic medication.
Mood stabilizing autism medication
Lithium, Lamictal, Depakene, Depakote, Tegretol, Topamax, Trileptal, and Keppra are options to explore with your child's pediatrician.
Risperidone (Risperdal) and Aripiprazole (Abilify) are the only drugs approved by the FDA for children with autism spectrum disorder. Risperidone can be prescribed for children between 5 and 16 years old to help with irritability and aggression. Aripiprazole can be prescribed for children between 6 and 17 years old.
The only medications approved by the FDA for children with autism are Abilify and Risperdal. Both are antipsychotic medications that can help with irritability and aggression. Medication can also be helpful for kids who also have another diagnosis.
Behavioral Therapy
Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) and related therapies are usually considered to be the "gold standard" of autism-specific treatment. Many districts offer ABA classrooms or provide ABA therapists as part of the school's disability program.
Antipsychotic medications
The atypical antipsychotics risperidone (Risperdal) and aripiprazole (Abilify) are the only two medications approved by the FDA to help reduce irritability in autistic children and teens.
Both risperidone (Risperdal) and aripiprazole (Abilify) are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treating autism-related irritability, which includes aggression, tantrums, and self-injury.
This may take the form of severe tantrums, lashing out, etc. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved two medicines for the treatment of autism-related irritability. They are risperidone (Risperdal) and aripiprazole (Abilify). They belong to a class of drugs known as atypical antipsychotics.
Compared to other people, adults with autism are at higher risk for bipolar disorder, a serious mental health condition that often begins in a person's teens or 20s. Bipolar disorder affects about 1 in 10 adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
In addition to therapies and educationally based services, there are treatments that can help with serotonin levels, which may also improve some of the medical complications of autism (especially in the gut) and other behavioral implications.
Lithium is a mood stabilising medicine used to treat certain mental illnesses, such as: mania (feeling highly excited, overactive or distracted) hypomania (like mania, but less severe) bipolar disorder, where your mood changes between feeling very high (mania) and very low (depression)
According to an explanation from UCLA, maternal exposure to lithium levels in the second and third quartiles was associated with a 24% to 26% higher risk for autism compared with maternal exposure to lithium levels in the 25th percentile.
Our systematic review and meta-analysis found antipsychotics for children and adolescents with ASD more efficacious than placebo in reducing stereotypies, hyperactivity, irritability and obsessions, compulsions, and in increasing social communication and global functioning.
Antipsychotics are the most frequently used type of psychiatric drug in autism. That may be because two antipsychotics are the only drugs approved specifically for certain behaviors in children and teens with autism.
Common triggers may include changes in routine, sensory overload, frustration with communication, and difficulties with social interaction. Develop coping strategies: Once the triggers are identified, parents can work with their child to develop coping strategies.
Clinical experience suggests that one type, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors or SSRIs, “are useful and generally safe” in autism, according to an article by psychiatrists at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. SSRIs, which include Prozac and Zoloft, are also used to treat some anxiety disorders.
Does SSRI therapy help autistic children? Research suggests SSRIs don't change the core characteristics of autism in children. Also, emerging evidence suggests they might cause harm. It's possible, however, that SSRIs might help some autistic children with anxiety, but more high-quality research is needed.
The most commonly prescribed medications are methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta, Metadate, Quillivant), amphetamine (Adderall, Dexedrine, Vyvanse, Dyanavel), atomoxetine (Strattera), and guanfacine (Intuniv, Tenex).
While this is not a proposed cure for ASD, we illustrate that many of the aspects of ASD lead to the conclusion that brain inflammation may be playing a much larger role and that antihistamines may be a possible avenue for better control of these symptoms and aspects in a more benign way.
There are three levels of autism. Level 1 is considered more high functioning and independent, level 3 is the most debilitating form of the disorder, and level 2 is somewhere in between.
Long-term research that involved following a group of individuals with autism for two decades indicates that the average life expectancy for some autistic people is about 39 years. Furthermore, this population generally succumbed to health complications about 20 years earlier than individuals who do not have autism.
Untreated autism causes changes in brain function that make it more difficult for the person to control impulsive behavior or think rationally about their actions before they act on them. This can lead to situations where ASD adults are unable to live alone and take care of themselves without assistance.