Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Successfully Treated with Aripiprazole in a Patient with Autism Spectrum Disorder Symptoms Including Irritability

Abstract

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is associated with neuropsychiatric disorders, and patients often present with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We herein report a case of DMD accompanied by ASD that was successfully treated with aripiprazole, an atypical antipsychotic that has been used for treating irritability in child and early adolescent patients with ASD. The patient was diagnosed as having DMD at 3 years of age. Although he developed severe psychotic symptoms including irritability, insomnia, hallucinations, and delusions at 17 years of age, all the symptoms were successfully treated with aripiprazole without any detectable side effects.

Adults living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy: old and new challenges in a cohort of 19 patients in their third to fifth decade

“…Cognitive network dysfunction is well described in DMD patients from infancy, ranging from intellectual disabilities to impaired verbal and memory skills, attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder and obsessive‐compulsive disorder [8, 9, 24–32]. It can be inferred from our study cohort that the cognitive and psychiatric profile may continue to have an impact on the overall health and care requirements of DMD patients in their adulthood.…”