Prevalence and patterns of medication use in children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders in the Western Cape

Includes abstract.
Includes bibliographical references.
The Autism Spectrum Disorders(ASD) are a group of neurobiological conditions of growing prevalence for which there is no known cure. International prevalence studies have determined that children and adolescents with ASD are a highly medicated population. This comes to light in the context of a paucity of data around the efficacy of commonly prescribed medications. There is no data around the prevalence of medication use in the ASD population in South Africa. The aim of this study is to determine the prevelance and patterns of medication use in children and adolescents with ASD in the Western Cape and to determine the relationship between demographic variables and behaviours and medication use.