Comorbidities in Developmental Disorders

In the last decade the term ‘comorbidity’ has gained popularity in the field of paediatric neurodisability, with the increasing recognition that many conditions are rarely present in isolation. Within this field, the term is often used to refer to the co-occurrence of conditions more frequently than would be expected by chance, which can include instances where one condition causes the other, where they share a common cause (for example, genetic), or where they are in fact manifestations of a single condition. Whether it is valid to use the term ‘comorbidity’ in all these situations, and how precisely it should be used, is something that the contributors to this book grapple with in their own fields of interest. The contributors, all world experts in their fields, also discuss what we can learn from the presence of comorbidities, however defined, about the aetiology and treatment of neurodevelopmental disabilities. In particular, they demonstrate how our increasing understanding of the mechanisms underlying the common association of many ‘comorbidities’ is helping us to understand the natural history of these conditions and improve our management of them. Martin Bax was one of the pioneers of community paediatrics and brought a scholarly approach to the subject. He has inspired many paediatricians and has developed an active and productive research group. Dr Bax was for many years senior editor of Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology and was chairperson of the European Academy of Childhood Disability and President of the Society for the Study of Behavioural Phenotypes (SSBP). Christopher Gillberg is Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Gothenburg, and Chief Physician at the Child Neuropsychiatry Clinic at Queen Silvia Children’s Hospital, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg. He is also Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at University College London (Institute of Child Health), University of Glasgow and at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow. He is the founding editor of European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and is or has been on the editorial boards of several journals. He has written or co-authored more than 450 peer-reviewed papers.