autism

In the United States, caring for a child with special health care needs usually means higher medical expenses for a family — particularly for low-income families, who spend a disproportionally large share of their income on their child’s care. Yet the amount of financial burden for these families also depends on their state of residence, says Paul T. Shattuck, Ph.D., professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. “The percentage of low-income families in a given state with out-of-pocket expenses that exceeded 3 percent of their income varied considerably according to state and ranged from 5 percent to 25. 8 percent (District of Columbia and Montana, respectively).” Video available.

For teens with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families, the transition to young adulthood may be especially difficult. To better understand this issue and how best to address it, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has awarded a five-year grant to Paul T. Shattuck, Ph.D., assistant professor at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis. “This study will help us one day answer one of the most pressing issues in treating ASD,” said NIMH Director Thomas R. Insel, M.D. “Bridging the gap in health care, service use, and insurance coverage as these young people leave the school systems and enter adulthood may help prevent lapses in behavioral, social, and occupational skills that they and their families have worked so hard to achieve.”

“Timely identification and diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can impact a child’s development and is the key to opening the door to the services and therapies available to children with autism,” says Paul Shattuck, Ph.D., assistant professor at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis. “Unfortunately, our research shows that the average age of autism diagnosis is nearly six years old, which is three to four years after diagnosis is possible.” Shattuck is the lead author of an article on the timing of ASD identification in the current issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Video available

Using an innovative statistical approach, a research team from the School of Medicine and the University of California, Los Angeles, has identified two regions of DNA linked to autism. They found the suspicious DNA with a much smaller sample of people than has been used traditionally in searches for autism genes.

Using an innovative statistical approach, a research team from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of California, Los Angeles, has identified two regions of DNA linked to autism. They found the suspicious DNA with a much smaller sample of people than has been used traditionally in searches for autism genes.

A pediatric ophthalmologist at the School of Medicine and St. Louis Children’s Hospital conducts specialized testing and vision correction (refractive) surgery, on children with cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and neurobehavioral disorders such as autism. To date, this is one of the only U.S. medical centers performing refractive surgery on these children and has the highest volume, operating on about 60 special-needs children a year.

Ophthalmologist Lawrence Tychsen examines a patient.A pediatric ophthalmologist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and St. Louis Children’s Hospital conducts specialized testing and vision correction (refractive) surgery, on children with cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and neurobehavioral disorders such as autism. To date, this is one of the only U.S. medical centers performing refractive surgery on these children and has the highest volume, operating on about 60 special-needs children a year. More…

Temple Grandin transforms our views of how animals and autistic people perceive the world and how they connect. Her Assembly Series talk “The Boundaries of Humanity” is at 11 a.m. on Oct. 4 in Graham Chapel.

Drawing by an autistic childA research team at the School of Medicine has identified regions of DNA that may be related to risk for autism. The researchers are learning how autism is inherited, and to identify genetic factors, they’re studying families and looking for traits that normally aren’t considered autistic but have connections to autism risk. Several studies have demonstrated that autism has a strong genetic component.

Drawing by an autistic childA research team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has identified regions of DNA that may be related to risk for autism. The researchers are learning how autism is inherited, and to identify genetic factors, they’re studying families and looking for traits that normally aren’t considered autistic but have connections to autism risk. Several studies have demonstrated that autism has a strong genetic component. If one child in a family is autistic, there’s about a 10 percent chance that a sibling also will have autism.