Understanding Asperger Syndrome
It can be hard to differentiate between Asperger syndrome and a high functioning autistic disorder, because both of these disorders are in the autistic spectrum. However those with AS do not display delays in either cognitive or language development skills. But because this can also be said of those with high functioning autism, it can sometimes be difficult to differentiate between the two.
Hans Asperger, an Austrian pediatrician, was the first to pinpoint the disorder in 1944, when he described his patients as failing to demonstrate empathy, as well as lacking nonverbal communication skills. It wasn’t until 50 years later that this syndrome was finally recognized and classified as an actual disorder. Today, there are still many questions about the autistic disorder-like impairment. There has long been doubt about the differences in high functioning autistic individuals and those that have AS.










