PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

I have DS who is almost 19 months. Doesn't say any real words, doesn't turn/answer when he is called, doesn't follow directions. He is however, very social, makes eye contact, good interaction/smiles. I had him evaluated a week ago and I was told yesterday that the areas of receptive and expressive language were low so he qualified for speech therapy. They also mentioned that his cognitive skills were on the low end of normal, but that he did not qualify for any therapy there. All of the other areas he was normal- physical, adaptive, motor. A woman at the agency said I may also want to look into getting him evaluated by an audiologist. (any recs?)

I did a search on here and found a thread referring to PDD-NOS as her DC had very much the same issues as my DS, but how does this get diagnosed if I did not have a child psychologist at my evaluation? There was only a speech evaluator and an evaluator looking at the other areas physical, motor, etc... Should I mention something to my service coordinator at our meeting next week? Would also like to hear some experiences from parents that had their kids diagnosed with this. Thanks!

PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

DS was evaluated for speech last year. He qualified but they also suggested an audiologist. We got very mixed results and that led us to a developmental pediatrician. DS was diagnosed by developmental pediatrician as autistic. It was then that it was brought up to EI.
That's when he had his evaluation by psychologist. But all the while he was seeing seen by speech and SEIT. Psychologist said they could understand why he was diagnosed with autism but wasn't ready to diagnose him yet and would rather re - evaluate in a few months. Meanwhile DS was approved for additional services from EI.
If you have any questions speak to your service coordinator (not the eiod). They are there to help you and answer any questions. Mine spent and hour and a half on the phone with me the other day just answering questions.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

In addition, I would want to know what the title of the person was who evaluated motor skills. Your child can have an OT and a PT eval, as well as a psychological, all provided by EI.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Thanks for your responses. I have a meeting with the coordinator next week so I will mention something to her then (she is not the greatest in getting back to me with phone calls) about bringing in a psychologist. In the meantime do I find an audiologist on my own, or is that through EI?

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

PDD-NOS used to be often diagnosed (and often misdiagnosed) for some children who had symptoms of autism, but not a full presentation of symptoms. Without social deficits, a child would not be diagnosed with PDD-NOS. However, there is no longer a PDD-NOS diagnosis, just Autism Spectrum Disorder, and it is more difficult to receive this diagnosis, because the criteria are more stringent.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

When my son was first evaluated by EI it was due to my concern about a speech delay. After receiving services for three months and not seeing any improvement, I specifically asked for a psy eval and they sent a psychologist to evaluate him. He was diagnosed with PDD-NOS. My son is and always has been very social and smiles all the time (except when he is a 4 y/o beast) Now that they have done away with the PDD-NOS diagnosis he has a general ASD (minimally) diagnosis with an offical ADHD diagnosis upcoming.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Posted by Domino

When my son was first evaluated by EI it was due to my concern about a speech delay. After receiving services for three months and not seeing any improvement, I specifically asked for a psy eval and they sent a psychologist to evaluate him. He was diagnosed with PDD-NOS. My son is and always has been very social and smiles all the time (except when he is a 4 y/o beast) Now that they have done away with the PDD-NOS diagnosis he has a general ASD (minimally) diagnosis with an offical ADHD diagnosis upcoming.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

i would ask for a psych eval as well. Normally the speech or SI evaluator will refer the child for this if needed but based on the little info you provided i would request one......it can't hurt and you are better off having this done now when your DC is young. Feel free to FM me with any questions! I am a professional in the field.

PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

You might be refering to my post when DS was first diagnosed. Push for the psychological eval. Please keep in mind, as others posted, PDD-NOS is no longer a diagnosis. Essentially, it is a little more difficult to get the doagnosis for the EI services due to this change.

FM me if you have any questions. I was lost as I was doing everything on my own. (DH and grandparents refused to believe anything was wrong) But I kept pushing because you have to be an advocate for your child and I never regret all the calls, etc because EI has (and is) working for my DS and I have seen a drastic improvment.

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

Thank you all for your helpful responses. To update, I did express my concerns at the meeting about bringing in a psychologist, and they said that would be fine if I wanted one to come in. However I did find out what you have told me that the PDD-NOS diagnosis does not exist anymore. For now, DS will be getting therapy 3x a week, in speech and "special instruction" which will focus on play skills and receptive areas. Just waiting for the therapists to call me to set up times.

Another question- do therapists generally schedule sessions during the day only? I wanted to see if anyone has had a therapist come on evenings or weekends. If possible, i'd like to see his progress during his sessions, and/or ask questions if I have them, and I work full time.

Thank you again for your advice/responses. I really appreciate hearing from other moms that have gone through this process, and professionals in the field. I am a nervous nelly so all of this helps!

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

I've had therapists as late as 4:30 and as early as 7:30 am. I've also "heard" when it's E.I services only they can provide services on the weekend. They don't like to mention that too often. Maybe someone in the field here can confirm. They really should work with your child's schedule. There was a time I said no to someone coming to the home as soon as my son got of the bus from a 4 hour special preschool. I wanted him to have at least an hour of down time, eat etc..

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

You can definitely have a therapist in the evening and the weekends. In fact, many of those therapists work in schools.

PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

rec for an audiologist that is great with young kids....Mary Margeret Griffin Massapequa ny

Re: PDD-NOS? Confused after EI Evaluation.

my son received services monday through saturday