Are we ready for a test that could ‘pre-diagnose’ #autism in babies?
Imagine your baby is assessed for pre-diagnostic autism with an eye-tracking device, and you learn that he or she is is likely to be later diagnosed with autism.
What does that mean? How should we talk to parents about this? And bear in mind that autism is highly variable and has a very wide range of both symptom profile and age of onset, which complicates how accurate such an assessment can be.
A new study challenges the misconception that kids with the disorder lack empathy.
In the study, Peterson and her colleagues showed children between the ages of 5 and 12 full-body photos of trained actors portraying happy, sad, angry, afraid, disgusted or surprised emotions. The actors’ faces were blurred. The children with autism did just as well as the children without the disorder in identifying the posed emotions. In a similar test that just showed people’s eyes, the children with autism did not score as well as those without.
The researchers found that children with dup15q syndrome have stronger beta oscillations than do children with autism or controls. “This is striking,” says Jeste. “There’s really no overlap with autism or controls.”
The findings suggest that beta oscillations could serve as a biomarker for 15q11-13 duplications. “One of the biggest challenges is that there are few objective and quantifiable biomarkers that can help us stratify children with a diagnosis,” says Jeste, assistant professor of psychiatry and neurology.
#Ride4Autism – #livingautismdaybyday
The Ride for Autism is an annual motorcycle ride that began in 2005 when two coworkers from UAW Local 245 were on break wondering what they could do to help another coworker’s family whose son was autistic. The first year ride in 2005 had a total of 56 motorcycle bikers raising over $8,000. In the past 10 years the RFA has raised over $100,000 with 100 percent of the proceeds benefiting Macomb/St. Clair County ASA and Autism Connections of the Judson Center.
Nike creates Flyease shoes for individuals with disabilities – w/video
“My dream is to go to the college of my choice without having to worry about someone coming to tie my shoes every day. I’ve worn Nike basketball shoes all my life. I can only wear this type of shoe, because I need ankle support to walk. At 16 years old, I am able to completely dress myself, but my parents still have to tie my shoes. As a teenager who is striving to become totally self-sufficient, I find this extremely frustrating and, at times, embarrassing.” – Matthew
Soon enough, his letter was picked up by Nike CEO Mark Parker and before long, Nike designer Tobie Hatfield started working with Matthew on a prototype, which would later on become the Nike LeBron Zoom Soldier 8 Flyease— shoes that make it easy for anyone to slip their feet in, and can be secured easily with specialized zippers.
School is an extension of our home where our kids feel the same excitement. However, it can be difficult for them too— the scenery, the people, their responsibility as students, co-existing with others, and so on. Amongst other things is their safety. Recent studies says that school bullies preys on children with autism.
“At a meeting with school counselors, the teenager finally spoke up, confessing that he was being bullied by students in the cafeteria. Once, they had pulled his pants down to his knees in front of his class. ”
“Many parents of children with autism already are well aware that their children are taunted and tormented at school, but the new study suggests the problem is pervasive. Dr. Sterzing’s data, collected from a nationally representative sample of 920 middle- and high-school students with an autism disorder, shows that 46 percent have been bullied. By comparison, in the general adolescent population, an estimated 10.6 percent of children have been bullied.” Read more >
Thus, us parents, should do our research and get to know the school first. It is important to find the best school for our children with autism.
Wow! I was searching for a website like this for a very very long time and here it is! Allow me to refer your site to my clients.
