Sex Differences in Psychiatric Comorbidities in Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A National Inpatient Sample Analysis.

Objective

To investigate sex differences in psychiatric comorbidities in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Methods

The US National Inpatient Sample dataset (January 2016 to December 2018) was used for this retrospective study. The patient population was selected by performing a query on all adolescent patients (aged 12-17 years) having ASD with the ICD-10-CM code starting with F84. All missing sex data were excluded. Additional data on mood disorders, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, adjustment disorders, psychotic disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)/conduct disorders, sleep-wake disorders, and substance use disorders were collected. Data on psychiatric comorbidities were collected using the ICD-10-CM code provided in the Clinical Classifications Software of the dataset.

Results

Mood disorders (37.4% vs 44.1%, P < .001) and anxiety disorders (29.4% vs 37.0%, P < .001) were more prevalent in females compared to males. The prevalence of ADHD and other conduct disorders was significantly higher in males than females (47.7% vs 36.7%, P < .001). Substance use disorders were slightly higher among males compared to females (3.7% vs 3.0%, P = .04).

Conclusion

The study findings revealed statistically significant disparities in psychiatric comorbidities among adolescent male and female patients with ASD. These findings could serve as a pilot for larger-scale research with this patient population in the future.