Is Williams syndrome like autism?

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Williams Syndrome (WS) are frequently characterized as mirror conditions in the socio-cognitive domain, with ASD entailing restrictive social interests and with WS exhibiting hypersociability.

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Is Williams syndrome a type of autism?

Autism and Williams syndrome are genetically based neurodevelopmental disorders that present strikingly different social phenotypes. Autism involves fundamental impairments in social reciprocity and communication, whereas people with Williams syndrome are highly sociable and engaging.

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What is the syndrome similar to autism?

Asperger syndrome, or Asperger's, is a previously used diagnosis on the autism spectrum. In 2013, it became part of one umbrella diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM-5).

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What is similar to Williams syndrome?

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and Williams syndrome (WS) both are neurodevelopmental disorders, each with a unique social phenotypic pattern.

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Is Williams syndrome a spectrum disorder?

Williams syndrome is a spectrum disorder. There is a great deal of variability in individuals throughout the spectrum. Medical concerns and learning challenges, emotional issues, and anxiety are common and can be all-consuming at times. The severity of the challenges varies and can ebb and flow over the years.

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Rare genetic disorder Williams Syndrome can mimic autism; advocates say it’s often diagnosed late

19 related questions found

Is Williams syndrome special needs?

Description. Williams syndrome is a developmental disorder that affects many parts of the body. This condition is characterized by mild to moderate intellectual disability or learning problems, unique personality characteristics, distinctive facial features, and heart and blood vessel (cardiovascular) problems.

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Are people with Williams syndrome intelligent?

Even claims about very low IQ turn out to be exaggerated. Williams syndrome IQ ranges from 48 to 85. True, people with Williams syndrome are often very loquacious and usually have better language than spatial skills, but the profile of the syndrome is unscientifically exaggerated by secondary sources.

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Is Williams syndrome associated with ADHD?

The most common psychiatric disorders found in Williams syndrome have been reported mainly in children and include Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in 65%, Specific Phobia in 43%, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) in up to 24% of cases.

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Is Williams syndrome overly friendly?

Williams syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by hypersociability and unique neurocognitive abnormalities. One of the characteristics of Williams syndrome is an inappropriate increase in social behavior. People with the syndrome may be overly friendly, even to strangers.

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Are people with Williams syndrome normal?

Williams syndrome is a rare disorder that can lead to problems with development. A low or absent nasal bridge can occur in association with infectious diseases or genetic diseases.

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What is the difference between ASD and Williams syndrome?

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Williams Syndrome (WS) are frequently characterized as mirror conditions in the socio-cognitive domain, with ASD entailing restrictive social interests and with WS exhibiting hypersociability.

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Is Williams syndrome the opposite of autism?

In some ways Williams syndrome is the opposite of autism. For example, people with Williams syndrome love to talk and tell stories, whereas those with autism usually have language delay and little imagination. Many people with Williams syndrome draw disjointed pictures, some with autism draw pictures in perfect detail.

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Can a child have autistic traits but not be autistic?

People with the BAP have some traits common to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but not enough to have the disorder. But it's not comedians who have drawn scientific scrutiny for having the BAP: it's the parents and siblings of people who actually have autism.

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Are people with Williams syndrome happy?

Williams syndrome is called the happy syndrome because people with this condition often have outgoing, friendly personalities and tend to be very social. They may have a unique ability to connect with others and form strong bonds, making them appear very happy and engaging.

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Do kids with Williams syndrome talk?

Communication difficulties: Most children with Williams syndrome develop speech skills later than other children their age. With intervention, most children develop the ability to communicate wants and needs effectively. In fact, for many children with Williams syndrome, expressive language may be a relative strength.

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What do children with Williams syndrome have?

The key characteristics of Williams syndrome are distinctive facial features, heart and blood vessel problems, feeding difficulties and developmental delay. Children with Williams syndrome have strengths in areas like speech, music and memory. They also tend to be outgoing.

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What famous people have Williams syndrome?

Several famous (or recognizable) people have been diagnosed with Williams syndrome, which include:
  • Amy Kotch, featured in KLRU-TV's public media.
  • Gloria Lenhoff, a soprano singer who has performed with Aerosmith, and the San Diego Master Chorale.
  • Ben (Big Red) Monkaba, a member of the Black Cat community theater.

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What is the behavior of someone with Williams syndrome?

The personality of individuals with Williams syndrome involves high sociability, overfriendliness, and empathy, with an undercurrent of anxiety related to social situations.

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Is Williams syndrome a learning disability?

As well as a learning disability, people with Williams syndrome will often share distinctive facial characteristics including a wide mouth with a pronounced bottom lip, slightly high and rounded cheeks, and widely-spaced teeth.

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What is the long term outlook for a child with Williams syndrome?

Outlook / Prognosis

Most people with Williams syndrome have a normal life expectancy, but some may have a reduced life expectancy due to complications of the disease (such as cardiovascular problems). Oftentimes, people with Williams syndrome will need additional support as they grow into adults.

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Do kids with Williams syndrome sleep?

Beyond infancy, findings have consistently indicated that children with WS have more sleep problems than age-matched TD children, including sleep anxiety, bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, frequent night waking, general restlessness, and excessive daytime sleepiness [10, 11, 41,42,43,44,45,46,47].

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Is Williams syndrome progressive?

Williams syndrome is a progressive disorder with multisystem involvement.

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Why are people with Williams syndrome so happy?

And they found that people with Williams syndrome have a lot more oxytocin than everybody else, and that it fluctuates wildly in the brain. As a result, they feel this biological impulse to love all the time.

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Can someone have mild Williams syndrome?

What is Williams syndrome? Williams syndrome (WS) is a rare genetic disorder. People with WS may have mild to moderate delays in their cognitive development (ability to think and reason) or learning difficulties.

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Does Williams syndrome get worse over time?

Yes, but the number and the severity of problems varies greatly among individuals. Many different body systems can be affected and since some of the medical problems can develop over time, it is important that individuals with Williams syndrome receive ongoing medical monitoring and supervision.

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