Autistic children who become schizophrenic.

Infantile autism and schizophrenia have been regarded as unrelated and distinct disorders. There is, however, some evidence in the literature that supports a relationship between the two disorders in that there may be a subgroup of autistic children in whom schizophrenia develops. The diagnostic criteria used in the literature to describe infantile autism and schizophrenia in childhood has not been uniform. The three cases in this report, diagnosed on the basis of current criteria and detailed clinical descriptions, clearly point to an initial diagnosis of infantile autism followed by the development of schizophrenia.