Autistic nonspeakers may use various strategies to manage the overload and lessen sensory distress. Photo: Unsplash / Naila Conita
Young people with a neurodevelopmental condition are five times more likely to die before the age of 25 than those without one, a study has found.
The University of Otago-led study looked at the mortality risk of 888,975 young people born between 1995 and 2009, until the end of 2019. About 40,000 of them had a neurodevelopmental condition.
It found while death was still rare among young people, those with a neurodevelopmental condition were nearly five times more likely to die before the age of 25.
They were also 12 times more likely to die because of a medical cause - such as an infection or chronic disease - and almost twice as likely to die by suicide or injuries.
The mortality risk was especially high among females, who were almost ten times more likely to die than females without neurodevelopmental conditions.
The study looked at six main groups ; ADHD, autism, intellectual disability, specific learning and motor disorders; communication and language disorders; and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
Autistic researcher and co-author Joanne Dacombe said the study highlighted that there were challenges around managing co-occurring health conditions young people might have if they also had a neurodevelopmental condition.
"Those co-occurring conditions can be respiratory, or neurological or gastrointestinal, it could be dealing with epilepsy or dealing with chronic infections. That can always be more challenging when you're dealing with someone who may have language challenges for example or physical challenges," she said.
"It highlights a need for better identification of those co-occurring conditions and treatment for those conditions that can help prevent those deaths."
Dacombe wanted to see training for clinicians and educators to improve awareness of neurodevelopmental conditions and reduce diagnostic overshadowing.
Lead author Dr Nick Bowden said it was important to remember the vast majority of young people with these conditions would lead long and healthy lives.
"What these findings highlight is the urgent need for targeted healthcare interventions, improved access to medical and mental health services, and systemic changes to address the social and structural barriers which contribute to health inequities," he said.
The study found mortality risk varied greatly by condition, with those with specific learning and motor disorders having 8.5 times higher mortality; intellectual disability 8 times higher, communication and language disorders 6 times higher, autism 2.5 times higher, and ADHD about 2 times higher.
The research team looked at recorded deaths and grouped them into three categories, medical causes (such as infections or chronic diseases), injuries (including accidents), and suicide.
Advanced statistical models were used to compare the risk of death between youth with and without neurodevelopmental conditions.
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