Autism and Deafness: Guide

Co-occurring patterns of deafness and autism

Co-occurring patterns of deafness and autism

There are three autism adapted assessments for deaf children and young people that can be accessed through Deaf CAMHS:

Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R)
(A parent/carer structured interview gathering important information about the child) 

Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Edition 2 (ADOS-2)
(A play and intervention assessment with the child with 5 modules for all age ability ranges) 

Social Responsiveness Scale – Edition 2 (SRS-2) 
(A screening questionnaire for parents/carers or teachers)

These adaptations are the result of the research Diagnostic Instruments For Autism In Deaf Children Study: DIADS. This study worked to adapt autism assessments to make them more suitable for deaf children and young people, to give better assessments and a more accurate diagnosis, and to support families/carers on the right pathway for their deaf child/young person. The study (funded by the MRC) started in September 2013 and completed in 2021.

Timeline of how the study developed: 
The Delphi Consensus – international experts gave advice about the 3 autism assessments to be adapted to make them more suitable for deaf children/young people. 
Three autism assessments were translated into BSL for use in the UK. 
Families and deaf children /young people were recruited to help test the new assessments. 
The data was analysed to see if the adapted assessments worked. 
The National Deaf Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services were trained in how to use the 3 new assessments. 
An international conference and presentations were held on the subject of Deaf Autism. Three papers were published about the three different assessments.

The results showed that these assessments were as accurate as the assessments available for hearing children. This is the first time these have become available for deaf children.

The papers written about each assessment can be found on Google Scholar:
Modifying and Validating the Social Responsiveness Scale edition 2 for use with deaf children and young people - PLOS ONE Journal 
Adapting and Validating the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule 
Version 2 for use with deaf children and young people - Journal of Autism and Development Disorders 
Adapting and Validating the Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised for Use with deaf children and young people - Autism Journal

Contact your local Deaf CAMHS for further help and advice

Webcast overview of comorbid occurrence: powerpoint with live presentation 'More Than Meets the Eye: An Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders'  using ASL, English subtitles, and voice over.