We're currently making some changes in the background of our email updates to solve some problems we've been having recently. During our testing phase this may automatically generate some alerts, which will show below, but you can ignore these! If all goes according to plan we will be resuming normal service in the next week…
The LGA has launched a series of case studies that illustrate the positive work councils are undertaking with their local partners to support people living with autistic spectrum conditions (ASC) in their communities.
Letter. Library Services do not currently have access to this journal, but you can request a copy of the article online and we will try to get a copy to you: http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
It’s been nearly five years since the horrific abuse at Winterbourne View was uncovered by the BBC’s Panorama. Since then, the Government and NHS England have outlined new plans to reduce the number of people on the autism spectrum and with learning disabilities who are in inappropriate inpatient units in England, but progress has been frustratingly slow. A new independent report released today says the scale of the challenge may be greater than first thought and calls on the Government to appoint a Learning Disability Commissioner to secure the rights of some of the most vulnerable people in society.
To perform metabolic testing on 406 patients (age range 3–22y [mean 6.71, SD 4.15], 343 males and 63 females) with nonsyndromic autism spectrum disorders (ASD) to assess the diagnostic yield. In addition, we reviewed our hospital's clinical database of 8500 patients who had undergone metabolic testing to be identified for inborn errors of metabolism (IEM), and described the characteristics of those with IEM and nonsyndromic ASD. Please contact the library to receive a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
High-functioning autism (HFA) and schizophrenia (SZ) are two of the main neurodevelopmental disorders, sharing several clinical dimensions and risk factors. Their exact relationship is poorly understood, and few studies have directly compared both disorders. Our aim was thus to directly compare neuroanatomy of HFA and SZ using a multimodal MRI design. Login using your SSSFT NHS OpenAthens for full text. SSOTP - request a copy of the article from the library - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
To examine the association between autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptoms and (a) social functioning, (b) mental health, (c) quality of life and (d) sleep in children with and without attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
Journal of Abnormal Psychology125.3 (Apr 2016): 412-422.
While perception is recognized as being atypical in individuals with autism spectrum conditions (ASC), the underlying mechanisms for such atypicality are unclear. Here we test the hypothesis that individuals with ASC will show enhanced orientation discrimination compared with neurotypical observers. This prediction is based both on anecdotal report of superior discriminatory skills in ASC and also on evidence in the auditory domain that some individuals with ASC have superior pitch discrimination. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
Estimates of the proportion of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who are minimally verbal vary from 25%to 35%. However, there is a lack of consensus in defining minimally verbal and few detailed reports of communication outcomes for these children following intervention. The aim of this study was to explore how minimally verbal children have been defined and to document the proportion of minimally verbal children in a group of children with ASD receiving a community based early intervention programme. Login using your SSSFT NHS OpenAthens for full text. SSOTP - request a copy of the article from the library - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
Open access. The aim of this study was to test the usefulness of the Cognitive and Language scales Bayley-III in the early assessment of cognitive and language functions in the context of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis. This paper focuses on the application of the Bayley-III and studies the predictive value of the test result in children with ASD with different levels of verbal ability.
Developmental Psychology52.5 (May 2016): 735-745.
This longitudinal study investigated whether variation in the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) and early parent–child interactions predicted later empathic behavior in 84 toddlers at high or low familial risk for autism spectrum disorder. Two well-studied OXTR single-nucleotide polymorphisms, rs53576 and rs2254298, were examined. Parent–child interaction was measured at 15 and 18 months of age during free play sessions. Empathy was measured at 24 and 30 months using a response to parental distress paradigm. While there was no direct association between parent–child interaction quality or OXTR and empathy, rs53576 moderated the relation between interaction quality and empathy. Results suggest that the interplay between OXTR and early parent–child interactions predicts individual differences in empathy in children at varying risk for atypical social development. Findings are consonant with a differential susceptibility model in which an OXTR variant may increase the social salience of interaction processes for specific allele carriers. These results increase our understanding of predictors of empathy development in young children with a wide range of social outcomes. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
In the philosophy of well-being, there is hardly anything written on the lives of people with autism or on the question whether existing philosophical theories of well-being are suited for understanding how well the lives of autistic persons are going. This paper tries to make some progress towards filling this gap. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
"Women who take paracetamol during pregnancy 'risk having a child with autism or ADHD'," the Mail Online reports. But the Spanish study it reports on provides no evidence of a direct link to either condition.
"A hearing test is being hailed as a revolutionary technique to spot autism years earlier than current methods can," the Mail Online reports. The test is based on measuring how the inner ear reacts to sound.
But while the test shows promise, the headline is premature. The study the report is based on only looked at boys aged 6 to 17 years old and was not used to diagnose autism spectrum disorder.