957 Intellectual disability and autism: Cognitive and behavioral change with early intervention and AAC Gat Savaldi-Harussi and Lidia Gabis Abstract This chapter describes the diagnostic overlap between intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), addresses the challenge of measuring cognitive and functional ability in the presence of autism, and discusses the changing of prognosis over time. A case study demonstrates this overlap and the dynamics of intellectual disability evaluation and its dependence on the degree of intervention and use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) when performing cognitive tests during a period of brain development. The case study describes positive changes in the functional, cognitive, and behavioral measures of a girl aged three years and nine months, diagnosed at nine months with motor and global developmental delays, and treated in intensive intervention daycare. At two and a half years old she was diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) and global developmental delay due to a rare genetic syndrome, Coffin-Siris. After an additional year of intervention, she still met ASD criteria, but her intelligence measured borderline. The chapter emphasizes the importance of early multidisciplinary intervention and AAC Chapter on page 183
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