The debate in the medical community rages on.

Hey, guys, this is Annie guest-hosting for D News.

This week, the Scottish singer Susan Boyle

made headlines by announcing her diagnosis of Asperger's

Syndrome, opening up new conversations

about the often misunderstood condition.

Asperger's is characterized by difficulty

in social interaction and nonverbal communication,

and in some cases, clumsiness, atypical use of language,

and other symptoms.

And currently, it's considered part of autism spectrum

disorder, a diagnosis that's increased significantly

over the past two decades.

According to the British Medical Journal,

autism diagnoses were rare in the UK and the US

until the '90s, when the rates began surging.

They've since leveled off in the UK,

but according to the Center for Disease Control,

autism rates have continued to grow in the US.

As of 2008, one in 88 children were

identified as being on the autism spectrum.

The spectrum contains a range of conditions, characterized

by social and communicated challenges

in certain behavioral pattern.

ASD is about five times as prevalent in boys as in girls.

The spike in rates is not fully understood,

though it's been suggested that the spike is related

to increased awareness and changing diagnostic standards.

What the autism spectrum entails is still

being hammered out in the medical community.

Earlier this year, for example, Asperger's Syndrome

was removed from the DSM-5, which

is the manual psychiatrists use to diagnose.

It was folded in with autism as basically a higher functioning

form of the disorder.

Asperger's patients don't typically

suffer from cognitive or linguistic impairment

and are often above average intelligence.

Still newer research finds that there may in fact

be significant biological differences between Asperger's

and autism.

Harvard neurologists and psychiatrists

measured brain connectivity among Asperger's and autism

patients using a measure called EEG coherence.

They found that this measure could

be a distinguishing factor but that larger studies are needed,

also pointing out that those differences can have

huge implications for patients, their families,

and their caregivers.

As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments.

For D News, this is Annie.