In “A Prospective Study of the Emergence of Early Behavioral Signs of Autism,” Professor Sally Oznoff and colleagues found that infants who develop Autism behave differently than their typically developing peers even as early as one year of age. Writing in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, the researchers reported about a comparison of video tapes of children (n=50, half of whom had Autism) made at six-month intervals during infancy and early childhood.
Continue reading ‘Autism appears early’
In the Virginia (US) legislature (which I sometimes call the “House of Burgess” for fun), efforts to mandate coverage of intensive behavioral therapy (AKA “ABA,” “discrete-trial training,” etc.) by insurance policies gained a little momentum 16 February when Senate Bill 464 passed by a nearly 2-to-1, bi-partisan margin. Earlier this legislative session, one similar bill (HB 303) was rejected by a narrow vote (4-to-4) in the committee on Commerce and Labor of the Virginia House but another (HB 34) may still be alive (I’m too uniformed about legislative processes to know).
The summary of the just-passed Senate bill, whose chief patron is Senator Janet D. Howell of Reston (VA, US), is as follows:
Requires health insurers, health care subscription plans, and health maintenance organizations to provide coverage for the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and for treatment of ASD in individuals from age two to six, subject to an annual maximum benefit of $35,000. This requirement does not apply to individual or small group policies, contracts, or plans, and will not apply to the state employees’ health insurance plan until July 1, 2015. This measure will not apply to an insurer, corporation, or health maintenance organization if the costs associated with coverage exceed one percent of premiums charged over the experience period.
Virginians who are concerned about helping young children with Autism to succeed should contant their representatives to urge passage of this legislation. It is not a perfect solution (for example, the coverage is limited to young children only), but this is a situation in which the perfect should not be the enemy of the good.
Senator Howell’s bill has co-patrons, including R. Creigh Deeds, Mark R. Herring, David W. Marsden, J. Chapman Petersen, Richard H. Stuart, Patricia S. Ticer, Jill Holtzman Vogel, and Mary Margaret Whipple. Way to go to them and to every Virginia Senator who voted for the bill: Blevins, Colgan, Deeds, Edwards, Herring, Houck, Howell, Locke, Lucas, Marsden, Marsh, McEachin, Miller (Y.B.), Norment, Northam, Petersen, Puckett, Puller, Quayle, Reynolds, Saslaw, Stosch, Stuart, Ticer, Vogel, Wampler, and Whipple. Thanks.
- HB 34 Health insurance; mandated coverage for autism spectrum disorder.
- SB 464 Health insurance; mandated coverage for autism spectrum disorder.
- HB 303 Health insurance; mandated coverage for autism spectrum
The state legislature voted nearly 2:1 to reject similar legislation in 2009 (HB 1588 Autism spectrum disorder; mandated health insurance coverage).
Janie Shelton and colleagues at the University of Califonia at Davis reported that women over 40 years of age who give birth have an increased risk of the child having Autism. By studying a large sample of births, the researchers were able to disentangle the relative contributions of maternal and paternal age to the likelihood of having a child with Autism.
This study conflicts with some previous research that pointed at paternal age as a factor in Autism (see the EBD Blog page by Leslie Feldman on Fathers’ Age as Contributor to Risk for Autism). The Shelton et al. analysis expressly examined the relative contributions and points at maternal age as an independent factor. Additional research will help to clarify the relationships.
Continue reading ‘Maternal age increases risk of Autistic offspring’
As the US House of Representatives prepares to make statements about and amend HR 4247, Representative Joe Courtney (CN, US) posted a statement on the blog maintained by the House committee that will debate the legislation. The post, “Rep. Joe Courtney: Congress Must Make Schools Safe Havens for Children,” touts Representative Courtney’s perspective on the legislation. There’s lots more about the proposed legislation via that blog and related resources. Take a look.
Also, read the actual proposed legislation, “Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act” and the position statements by the Council for Children with Behavior Disorders about seclusion and restraint and “Position Summary on Restraint and Seclusion.”
During the 40 weeks after receiving a brief course of ω-3 (“omega three”) polyunsaturated fatty acids, adolescents at risk for psychotic disorders were less likely to progress to psychotic status than similar peers who did not receive the supplement. In the study by G. Paul Amminger and colleagues, the youths in the treated group also had fewer positive, negative, and general symptoms of psychosis and improved overall functioning than those in the control group.
The youths in the treated group received a supplement of two fish-oil capsules twice a day for 12 weeks, and the controls received a placebo of coconut-oil capsules. The researchers then monitored their status and symptoms for the following 40 weeks.
Continue reading ‘Fish oil and adolescent psychosis’
The US Congress is considering legislation to prevent abusive restraint and seclusion of students in schools. This is a welcome consequence of the highly visible reports about terrible abuses of students’ right to be free from harm. However, as much as I support this initiative, it is important to make clear that the laws (and regulations resulting from them) must be crafted carefully.
Here’s some text from the press efforts by the US House of Representatives about this important legislation. I follow it with a cautious support of the law.
Continue reading ‘US legislators consider law for preventing abusive restraint and seclusion’
As most readers probably know, the UK General Medical Council censured Dr. Andrew Wakefield for his research that supposedly shows a link between immunization with the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism. The Autism corner of the blogosphere has been rife with discussion (more than what I can up with keep). However, Liz Ditz has been maintaining a catalog of notes pro and con regarding the finding. For those who are interested, read Andrew Wakefield: Dishonesty, Misleading Conduct, and Serious Professional Misconduct: Blog Posts Critical of Verdict; Blog Posts Approving of Verdict
Also see theBBC news coverage, MMR scare doctor ‘acted unethically’ panel finds, and the UK Telegraph story, “GMC brands Dr Andrew Wakefield ‘dishonest, irresponsible and callous’.”
I want to note that readers should understand that the GMC investigation, though very important, did not expressly examine the scientific basis of Dr. Wakefield’s case. The findings discuss whether he was qualified to do the work and followed procedures in seeking approval for it. The scientific strength of the findings from the study in question have been examined extensively by well-qualified researchers and found wanting, though (see, for example, Hornig et al., 2008).
Lord Jones of Cheltenham, a member of the the UK Parliament, has formally asked “what measures are planned to improve services for (a) children with serious emotional disturbance, and (b) adults with mental health illnesses.” The request is in response to recent UK report, Keeping Children and Young People in Mind – Full Government Response to the CAMHS Review that, in turn (and as the title shows), was a response to the government-sponsored review of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS).
Keeping Children and Young People in Mind calls for a system of universal services, targeted services, and specialist services accompanied by support for them from local and national government agencies. Get a copy of Keeping children and young people in mind: the Government’s full response to the independent review of CAMHS and visit the Web site of the UK Department of Children, Schools, and Families for more about “services supporting the emotional wellbeing and mental health of children and young people.”
See the Parliamentary records for a written version of the request by Lord Jones.
In Pediatrics Dr. Timothy Buie and colleagues published a paper providing evidence-based recommendations for pediatricians who evaluate and treat gastrointestinal problems in patients with Autism. The authors, who represent many important scientific groups concerned with allergies, gastrointestinal disorders, nutrition, and similar problems, concluded that children with Autism and related disorders should be assessed and, as approriate, given medical care just as would individuals without Autism. The team encouraged pediatricians to develop and employ “evidence-based algorithms for the assessment of abdominal pain, constipation, chronic diarrhea, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).”
Continue reading ‘Science, gastro-intestinal problems, diets, and Autism’
Writing in Molecular Psychiatry, L. Palmieri of the Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Department of Pharmaco-Biology, University of Bari (Bari, IT) and colleagues reported the results of a small-n study of levels of metabolic transporters in the brain tissue of individuals with and without Autism. They compared the contents of samples from the brains of individuals with Autism and individual without Autism (matched on the bases of sex, age, and time after death that the samples were obtained). They found aspartate-glutamate carrier activity was increased by excessive calcium levels in brains of the Autistic individuals.
Continue reading ‘Excessive levels of calcium mark brains of individuals with Autism’
Thanks to a comment by reader DrFoo (AKA ‘Rollen’), I was alerted to an interesting study about variation in the rates of Autism in different ethnic populations. The news releases say that the incidence of Autism among Hispanics is lower than it is among non-Hispanic white peers.
These news releases refer to a study entitled “Explaining Low Rates of Autism Among Hispanic Schoolchildren in Texas” by Raymond Palmer and colleagues. Here’s the abstract:
In data from the Texas Educational Agency and the Health Resources and Services Administration, we found fewer autism diagnoses in school districts with higher percentages of Hispanic children. Our results are consistent with previous reports of autism rates 2 to 3 times as high among non-Hispanic Whites as among Hispanics. Socioeconomic factors failed to explain lower autism prevalence among Hispanic schoolchildren in Texas. These findings raise questions: Is autism underdiagnosed among Hispanics? Are there protective factors associated with Hispanic ethnicity?
I’ve not had time to examine the issue closely, but I have a few links:
- From US TV ABC: Texas Study Confirms Lower Autism Rate in Hispanics
- From Reuters: Texas study confirms lower autism rate in Hispanics
The full citation is close to what follows…
Palmer, R. F., Walker, T., Mandell, D., Bayles, B., Miller, C. S. (2009). Explaining low rates of autism among Hispanic schoolchildren in Texas. American Journal of Public Health, 100, pp-to-come. 10.2105/AJPH.2008.150565
In “Hushing the intruders in her brain,” Shari Roan continued her account of childhood-onset schizophrenia as experieinced by January (‘Jani’) Schofield. In the current story, Ms. Roan provided an update about Jani’s and her family’s life and progress. The coverage includes cotent about changes in Jani’s therapy and medications, the family’s living situation, and other aspects of life with childhood schizophrenia. As previously, there are accompanying multimedia features to the story, including this video by Don Kelsen.
Continue reading ‘Jani’s story updated’
EBD Blog Comments