Prospective Study to Determine the Prevalence of Signs of Central Sensitization in Adults With ASD Without Intellectual Developmental Disorders (Presca)

Presca : Prospective Study to Determine the Prevalence of Signs of Central Sensitization in Adults With ASD Without Intellectual Developmental Disorders

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) characterized by two key features: persistent deficits in communication and social interaction, and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, and activities. Ninety-five percent of children aged 3 to 6 with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have sensory peculiarities. In adulthood, this figure remains at 90%. This atypical sensory processing has been part of the DSM diagnostic criteria since 2013.

Each sense can be affected by hypo- or hypersensitivity. In the continuum of this particular sensory processing, pain, which is defined as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience, can be very present but also difficult to detect and manage. It is now established that there are other characteristics that impact pain in ASD: information processing time may be longer, referred to as "latency time," but there are also difficulties in representing the body schema and difficulties in identifying and/or interpreting perceptions. Expression may be atypical, and there may be an apparent lack of reaction to pain due to a lack of flexibility.

All of these characteristics themselves vary over time (with age, the menstrual cycle, lack of sleep, fatigue, etc.), to the point that even pain specialists in pain clinics may not recognize them.

It is therefore essential to carry out appropriate, individualized assessments.

The scientific literature refers to the high frequency of painful events in ASD. For example, the prevalence of gastrointestinal disorders with their associated abdominal pain is significantly higher. Recent research has revealed that 82.4% of children and adolescents with ASD have at least one gastrointestinal symptom. Researchers have found that children with ASD are almost eight times more likely to have one or more chronic gastrointestinal symptoms than typically developing children. There are also more common comorbidities that facilitate or maintain chronic pain: Ehler Danlos syndrome and hypermobility spectrum disorders, IBD, ADHD, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, migraines and tension headaches, anxiety disorders, epilepsy, small fiber pathologies, nutritional deficiencies, musculoskeletal disorders, etc.

Mutations in certain genes involved in ASD (such as SCN9A, SHANK3, and CNTNAP2) lead to impaired neuronal function, producing different responses to pain, as demonstrated in both mouse and human models. The links between ASD and chronic pain are therefore complex. Sometimes it is the unusual characteristics of the pain that could lead to a diagnosis of ASD.

The concept of central sensitization (CS), which underlies the type of pain known as "nociplastic," helps explain the state of pain hypersensitivity and pathologies such as fibromyalgia and irritable bowel syndrome. In 2022, Grant et al. found that 21% of adults with ASD surveyed in the cohort reported having a diagnosis of central sensitization syndrome (CSS), but 60% scored at or above the cut-off. This suggests that CS symptoms such as pain and fatigue are very common in people with autism, and perhaps more prevalent than in the general population. For example, three-quarters of women diagnosed with ASD and/or ADHD in childhood report chronic pain in adulthood.

The issue is the disability associated with this chronic pain and the impairment of quality of life.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Pain Management; Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Detailed Description

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) characterized by two key features: persistent deficits in communication and social interaction, and restricted, repetitive behaviors, interests, and activities.

95% of children aged 3 to 6 with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have sensory peculiarities. In adulthood, this figure is estimated to be 90%..

This atypical sensory perception has been included in the diagnostic criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) since 2013, and recommendations advocate for sensory assessment (HAS, 2010) as part of treatment.

Each sense can be affected by hypo- or hypersensitivity. Pain is now defined by international consensus as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience, which may or may not be associated with injury. In the continuum of this particular sensory experience, pain can be very present but also difficult to detect and manage.

It is now established that there are other characteristics that impact pain in ASD: information processing time may be longer, referred to as "latency time," but there are also difficulties in representing body image and difficulties in identifying and/or interpreting perceptions. The expression of pain may be atypical, with an apparent lack of reaction to pain due to a lack of flexibility. All of these characteristics themselves vary over time, with age, the menstrual cycle, lack of sleep, fatigue, etc., to the point that even pain specialists in pain clinics may not recognize it. It is therefore essential to carry out appropriate and individualized assessments.

The scientific literature refers to the high frequency of painful events in ASD. For example, the prevalence of gastrointestinal disorders with associated abdominal pain is significantly higher. Recent research has revealed that 82.4% of children and adolescents with ASD have at least one gastrointestinal symptom. Researchers have found that children with ASD are almost eight times more likely to have one or more chronic gastrointestinal symptoms than typically developing children.

In addition, there are more common comorbidities that facilitate or maintain chronic pain : Ehler Danlos syndrome and hypermobility spectrum disorders, IBD, ADHD, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, migraines and tension headaches, anxiety disorders, epilepsy, small fiber pathologies, nutritional deficiencies, and musculoskeletal disorders.

Mutations in certain genes involved in ASD (such as SCN9A, SHANK3, and CNTNAP2) lead to impaired neuronal function, producing different responses to pain, as demonstrated in both mouse and human models. The links between ASD and chronic pain are therefore complex. In some cases, it is the unusual characteristics of the pain that can lead to a diagnosis of ASD.

Pain can be nociceptive (due to lesions that stimulate peripheral receptors) or neuropathic (related to a lesion or pathology of the nervous system). A third mechanism of pain is now being discussed, linked to the plasticity of the nervous system, known as nociplastic pain.

The concept of central sensitization (CS) underlying this type of pain helps explain the state of painful hypersensitivity and conditions such as fibromyalgia and irritable bowel syndrome. There are close links between these conditions and ASD.

Grant et al. in 2022 found that 21% of adults with ASD surveyed in the cohort reported having a diagnosis related to central sensitization syndrome (CSS), but 60% scored 40 or higher, the cut-off point for the Central Sensitization Index, which rates symptoms of CS. These signs of CS are therefore thought to be common and may explain why the prevalence of chronic pain (lasting more than three months) is high in ASD. This suggests that CS symptoms such as pain and fatigue are very common in people with autism and may be more prevalent than in the general population.

In comparison, the prevalence of chronic pain in France is estimated at 31.7%. According to Grant et al., autistic women are more likely to report a diagnosis of CFS and exhibit more symptoms of CF than men. Sensory sensitivity, anxiety, age, and gender were significant predictors of CF symptoms, with sensory sensitivity and anxiety modulating the relationship between autistic traits and CF symptoms. Three-quarters of women diagnosed with ASD and/or ADHD in childhood report chronic pain in adulthood. The issue is the disability associated with this chronic pain and the impairment of quality of life.

There is no specific tool for assessing nociplastic pain. The Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) is a self-report questionnaire validated in 2014 by Neblett et al. that attempts to measure central sensitization. The cut-off point was set at 40.

In the study by Grant et al., which surveyed adults with ASD without TDI using this tool, the group with SSC had an average score of 55.3 (versus 52.4 in Neblett's cohort), but the group without diagnosed SSC had a score of 40.6 (versus 30.9 in Neblett's cohort). This suggests that pain and fatigue are very common in people on the autism spectrum. They could explain why the prevalence of chronic pain (i.e., lasting more than 3 months) is high in ASD and why the nociplastic nature of this pain must be taken into account.

On the other hand, there is a FIRST self-administered questionnaire for fibromyalgia that allows for simple screening for this condition, which is at the top of the list of CSDs. Finally, as Grant et al. Investigator investigate the relationship between autistic traits and central sensitization syndromes by studying the correlation with the 10-item Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) and the relationship between sensory perception and central sensitization syndromes by studying the correlation with the Sensory Perception Quotient (SPQ) and SSC.

Chronic pain is common in ASD, and its nociplastic nature is poorly understood. In this context, the objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of signs of central sensitization in adults with ASD (without intellectual developmental disorder).

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 100

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Estelle ECR Cotte Raffour, Pain Resource Nurse; Phone Number: +33 6 60 34 61 67; Email: estelle.cotte-raffour@avec.fr
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Marie MD DRANSART, Doctor; Email: MDRANSART@ch-alpes-isere.fr

Study Locations

• France
  • Isere
    • Grenoble, Isere, France, 38000
      • Recruiting
      • Groupe hospitalier mutualiste de Grenoble
      • Contact: Adrien AM Monard, ARC; Phone Number: +33 4 76 70 70 22; Email: adrien.monard@avec.fr
      • Contact: Corinne CC Camarada, ARC; Phone Number: +33 476708995; Email: corinne.camarada@avec.fr
      • Principal Investigator: Estelle ECR Cotte Raffour, nurse

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

patient aged 18 or older who has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder without an intellectual disability,

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Age ≥ 18 years
2. Medical diagnosis of ASD without established intellectual developmental disorder
3. Patient affiliated with a social security system or beneficiary of such a system
4. Understanding of written French (good comprehension of self-questionnaire questions)
5. No objection from the patient to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Intellectual developmental disorder that prevents understanding of self-administered questionnaires
2. Individuals subject to legal or judicial protection measures or unable to express their consent

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Patient with Autism Spectrum Disorder without intellectual developmental disorder; Participation in this study includes an interview with the research staff (1 hour). During this appointment, they will check the eligibility criteria for the study and collect initial study data (gender, age) and then data on your medical history (date of ASD diagnosis, mental/physical history/comorbidities). You will then be asked to complete the following questionnaires (taking 20 minutes): SCI questionnaire, assessing central sensitization; HAD questionnaire, assessing anxiety and depression; Autism Spectrum Quotient, assessing autism symptoms; Sensory Perception Quotient; FIRST questionnaire, assessing symptoms and pain related to fibromyalgia; ASRS questionnaire, assessing attention disorders; Numerical pain scale; Numerical well-being perception scale; Numerical physical health perception scale

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Determine the prevalence of signs of central sensitization in adults on the autism spectrum without intellectual developmental disorders.	Percentage of patients with a CSI score ≥ 40 Total Score CSI :[0-100] A CSI score > 40 points defines clinically significant central sensitization. The score is divided into intervals: 0 to 29 = subclinical CS, 30 to 39 = mild CS, 40 to 49 = moderate CS, 50 to 59 = severe CS, 60 to 100 = extreme CS.	At inclusion

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Determine the average level of central sensitivity in adults on the autism spectrum, with at least one diagnosis of SSC	Average CSI score (part A) in this subgroup Total Score CSI (part A): [0-100] The score is divided into intervals: 0-29 = subclinical central sensitisation, 30-39 = mild central sensitisation, 40-49 = moderate central sensitisation, 50-59 = severe central sensitisation, 60-100 = extreme central sensitisation.	At inclusion
Determine the average level of central sensitivity in adults on the autism spectrum without a diagnosis of SSC	Average CSI score (part A) in this subgroup Total Score CSI (part A) :[0-100] The score is divided into intervals: 0-29 = subclinical central sensitisation, 30-39 = mild central sensitisation, 40-49 = moderate central sensitisation, 50-59 = severe central sensitisation, 60-100 = extreme central sensitisation.	At inclusion
Determine the prevalence of SSC diagnoses	Percentage of patients with at least one SC diagnosis (part B of the CSI) Total Score SCI (part B) : [0-10].This section provides additional clinical information, but does not count toward the numerical score.	At inclusion
Determine the average anxiety level	Average HAD-A Anxiety Score Total Score HAD-A : [0-21] Score [0 - 7]: no anxiety and/or depressive disorders. Score [8- 10]: questionable symptoms. Score [11 - 21: confirmed anxiety and/or depressive disorders of varying severity.	At inclusion
Determine the average level of depression	Average HAD-D Depression Score Total Score HAD-D : [0-21] Score [0 - 7]: no anxiety and/or depressive disorders. Score [8- 10]: questionable symptoms. Score [11 - 21: confirmed anxiety and/or depressive disorders of varying severity.	At inclusion
Determine the prevalence of subjects who test positive on the fibromyalgia self-assessment questionnaire	Percentage of patients with a score greater than 5 on the FIRST self-assessment questionnaire Total Score FIRST :[0-6] A score of 5 out of 6 items can detect fibromyalgia with a sensitivity of 90.5% and a specificity of 85.7%.	At inclusion
Determine the prevalence of acute pain in the last 12 weeks	Percentage of subjects with pain score >3 for several days in the last 12 weeks Total score EN Pain : [0-10] (0 very bad to 10 very good)	over the last 12 weeks prior to inclusion
Determine the average level of chronic pain	Average EN pain over the last 24 hours and over the last 7 days Total score EN Pain : [0-10] (0 very bad to 10 very good)	T1 : over the last 24 hours prior to inclusion T2 : over the last 7 days prior to inclusion
Determine the prevalence of chronic pain	Percentage of subjects with pain score >3, every day or almost every day for at least 3 months Total score EN Pain : [0-10] (0 very bad to 10 very good)	over the last 3 months prior to inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - Sensory Perception Quotient (SPQ) ; Total Score SPQ : [0-105] a lower score indicates higher sensory sensitivity	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - EN pain; Total Score EN Pain : [0-10] (0 very bad to 10 very good)	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - HAD-A Anxiety Score; Total HAD-A score: [0-21], Score [0-7]: no anxiety and/or depressive symptoms. Score [8-10]: borderline symptoms. Score [11-21]: confirmed anxiety and/or depressive symptoms of varying severity.	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - HAD-D Depression Score; Total Score HAD-D : [0-21], Score [0-7]: no anxiety and/or depressive symptoms. Score [8-10]: borderline symptoms. Score [11-21]: confirmed anxiety and/or depressive symptoms of varying severity.	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - Adult Self-Report Scale Symptom (ASRS) ; Total Score ASRS1.1 [0-24], A score of 14 or higher indicates a positive result on the ADHD screening test. The total score can be classified into four categories: 0-9 = mildly negative; 10-13 = strongly negative; 14-17 = mildly positive; and 18-24 = strongly positive	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - EN "good physical health" ; Total Score EN "good physical health" : [0-10] (0 very bad to 10 very good)	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - EN "well-being"; Total Score EN "well-being"; : [0-10] (0 very bad to 10 very good)	At inclusion
To investigate the relationship between the CSI score and several aspects of quality of life and autism symptoms.	Logistic regression model incorporating the following explanatory variable: - Autism Quotient (AQ) ; Total Score AQ :[0-50] , The average score for neurotypical individuals is 19 for women and 21.5 for men; The higher the score, the more autistic traits are present; People with Asperger's syndrome or another autism spectrum disorder score an average of 35.2; A score above 32 indicates the clinical threshold for Asperger's syndrome.	At inclusion

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Groupe Hospitalier Mutualiste de Grenoble

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 4, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): July 29, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): July 29, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: March 16, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 24, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): March 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 27, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 24, 2026
• Last Verified: January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: chronic pain; autism spectrum disorder; signs of central sensitization; ASD r without intellectual developmental disorder
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Mental Disorders; Neurobehavioral Manifestations; Neurodevelopmental Disorders; Child Development Disorders, Pervasive; Perceptual Disorders; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Chronic Pain; Agnosia
• Other Study ID Numbers: Presca; Prospective study to determine (Other Identifier: ANSM)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No