Question about high functioning autism

[harry]

What do we mean by high functioning autism nowadays?
When I started learning about autism they told me that asperger's syndrome and high functioning autism were two different diagnosis. The only difference was if people had difficulties with languages other than pragmatic difficulties. That's what I've been told.

 

[Alexej]

Firstly @harry welcome to the Forums. I am glad that you have jumped straight in there and asked a queation.

What do we mean by high functioning autism nowadays?
When I started learning about autism they told me that asperger's syndrome and high functioning autism were two different diagnosis. The only difference was if people had difficulties with languages other than pragmatic difficulties. That's what I've been told.

High functioning autism (HFA) is an older term, as is Asperger's.
The language nowadays is that people can be diagnosed as ASD 1, 2 or 3 depending on the support needs that they have. Thus HFA would be diagnosed today as ASD 1. However this is if the diagnosis happens inthe context DSM V which is the usual US reference book for diagnosis. There is also another book that is used, ICD 10 and this book is used more in europe. I was diagnosed as Asperger's 3 years ago and that was a valid diagnosis at that time. ICD has now been revised and ICD 11 is the current edition, and this edition does not include Asperger's as a name, using a similar approach as DSM.

This is my understanding of it all, but I know that there are people who are so much more in the know about this that I am on the forum, so I am quite willing to be corrected.