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Chapter 10 - Comorbid Mental Disorders and Neurodevelopmental Conditions

from Section 1 - An Overview: Definitions, Epidemiology and Policy Issues

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2023

By
Kiriakos Xenitidis ,
Caryl Marshall  and
Jane M. McCarthy
Edited by
Jane M. McCarthy ,
Regi T. Alexander  and
Eddie Chaplin
Jane M. McCarthy
Affiliation:
Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and University of Auckland
Regi T. Alexander
Affiliation:
Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust and University of Hertfordshire
Eddie Chaplin
Affiliation:
Institute of Health and Social Care, London South Bank University
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Summary

The link between neurodevelopmental disorders and offending behaviour is examined in other chapters of this book. This chapter’s focus is on the comorbidity between neurodevelopmental conditions and psychiatric disorders, when a person with one or more neurodevelopmental condition develops additional mental health problems. Specifically, the impact of such comorbidity in the development and maintenance of offending behaviour is addressed. In doing so, the authors examine each of the major neurodevelopmental disorders (intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder separately in the light of up-to-date evidence for each condition. The importance of identifying the presence of comorbid psychiatric disorders, including substance use disorder, is highlighted as essential in the diagnostic evaluation of those with neurodevelopmental conditions presenting with offending behaviour.

Keywords

autism spectrum disorderpsychiatric disorderattention deficit hyperactivity disorderintellectual disabilitycomorbidity
Type
Chapter
Information
Forensic Aspects of Neurodevelopmental Disorders
A Clinician's Guide
 , pp. 112 - 124
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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