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Children and young people with comorbid intellectual disabilities (ID) and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are more likely to exhibit comorbid mental health disorders (MHD) and other significant behaviours (SB) in addition to the core symptoms of ASD. The purpose of this paper is to identify the prevalence of comorbid MHD and behaviours in children and young people with ID and ASD in Egypt.

The Reiss scale for children’s dual diagnosis was administered by parents and teachers of 222 Egyptian children and young people with mild/moderate ID and ASD to screen for MHD and SB. The mean age of children and young people was 12.3 years (SD = 3.64), with 75.6 per cent male.

The results revealed that 62.2 per cent of children and young people with ID and ASD had high rates of comorbid MHD and behaviour disorders were shown in 64.4 per cent of the participated children and young people. The results identified anger, anxiety and psychosis being the most frequently diagnosed disorders while crying spells and pica were the most SB. No differences were found between the male and female with ID and ASD in the current study.

Mental health assessment of children and young people with ID and ASD will help to highlight the needs of these vulnerable children and develop the appropriate services.

The findings highlight the prevalence of MHD in children and young people with ID and ASD in Egypt. This has implications on the assessment of comorbid disorders and services needed for children with ID and ASD in Egypt.

Children and young people with co‐morbid intellectual disabilities and autism are more prone to experience mental health problems compared to people with intellectual disabilities but without autism. Children and young people with intellectual disabilities and autism may experience symptoms of anxiety at a greater level than the general population; however, this is not supported with research evidence in relation to the prevalence of anxiety in people with intellectual disabilities and autism. The aim of this study is to identify the prevalence of anxiety disorders in children and young people with intellectual disabilities and autism.

In total, 150 children and young people (age range of 5‐18 years) from a metropolitan district in the North of England were screened for anxiety using the Reiss Scales for Children's Dual Diagnosis and the Glasgow Anxiety Scale.

The results indicate that the prevalence of anxiety was 32.6 per cent for children and young people with intellectual disabilities and autism on the Glasgow Anxiety Scale. One of the important questions that arise from this study is the risk factors for the high prevalence of anxiety in children and adolescents with autism.

The findings highlight the prevalence of anxiety in children and young people with co‐morbid intellectual disabilities and autism. This has implications for assessment of anxiety disorders for children and young people with intellectual disabilities.