Back To School Tips For Children With Autism; Hispanic Children Often Have Undiagnosed Developmental Delays

Disabilities Are Not Contagious. Ignorance is.

Back To School Tips For Children With Autism


Going back to school, after a long summer, can be a challenge both for parents and children. There are a few tips that can help make the transition more manageable.

• Start at home preparing your child for returning to school. This should involve new bedtimes, waking up earlier and adjusting to new morning routines. Get organized.
• You should meet with your child's new teacher. Your teacher should be familiar with your child's current IEP. You should review the IEP before school starts.
• If your child is attending a new school, familiarize him/her with the new school surroundings. Ask the school for a tour of the school and classroom BEFORE school starts.
• Let your teacher/teachers know that you are always available to meet with them.
• When your child returns from school at the end of the day, ask him/her how it was at school. Ask about the teacher. Ask about the new schedule. Ask about any new friends your child met or old friends your child reunited with that first day. In other words, make every effort to allay any anxiety your child might have during the first few days at school.
• Make time to help your child with his/her homework. Take it slow. Give your child time to adjust to the new schedule at home.
• After the first week, call your child's teacher and ask the teacher how things are going at school.
• Every child adjusts differently. It's your job to help alleviate any stress your child might experience those first few days at school.

(The Stir, Yahoo, Oakland County Moms)


Broader Outreach Needed For Hispanic Children With Developmental Delays

Are Girls With Autism Being Underdiagnosed?; New, High Impact-Impact Studies Of Very Young Children; MEG To Study Brains

"What day is it,?" asked Pooh. "It's today," squeaked Piglet. "My favorite day," said Pooh.

Are Girls With Autism Being Underdiagnosed?

A recent study reported in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry suggests there may be gender bias in the diagnosis of girls with autism.

Typically, boys have higher rates of autism compared to girls by a factor of 4 to 1. After comparing data from 363 boys and girls with autism between the ages of ten and twelve, the researchers found that "the girls, rather than the boys, who met the criteria for ASD had a significantly higher prevalence of low intellectual levels and behavior difficulties."

Their study suggests girls are less likely to be diagnosed with ASD than boys. The study also suggests the gender bias may be due to girls possessing better adaptive or compensatory skills.

It is still unclear whether girls acquire such adaptive skills developmentally. It is also unclear whether there are shortcomings in the diagnostic measures used for ASD.
(ABC News and Examiner)


UC Davis Mind Institute And University of Washington Received Grant From Autism Speaks To Continue Research Into Novel, High-Impact Treatments For Very Young Children

What I Discovered On Twitter & Facebook

"Autism: Forget What We Can't Do...Remember What We Can Do."...Autism Poster

What I Discovered On Twitter And Facebook

Some months ago, I wrote a piece on the plethora of good and useful information I found on Facebook regarding autism. I thought I'd revisit the theme including adding the treasures found on Twitter. Below are examples:

• Joe Travolta, older brother of John, operates a film camp for children with autism. He's been operating the camp for seven years. Travolta has also partnered with ACT (Autism Care And Treatment) targeting improving awareness and services to military families who have children with autism.

• Abe's Hearts and Hooves is the creation of 13 year old Abraham Moses. Abe's dream was to create a place where people with disabilities could ride horses and develop self-confidence.
• In Bartow County, GA, county Sheriff's officers were trained in how to approach individuals with autism. The officers took part in a training class entitled, "Law Enforcement: Your Piece To The Autism Puzzle." In particular, the course focused on the issues of wandering, a majority of calls law enforcement sees.

• Autism Brainstorm is an interactive online community celebrating the abilities of everyone on and around the autism spectrum. For more information, visit http://www.AutismBrainstorm.org/
• Science Daily publishes some of the most current pieces surrounding research in autism. Visit http://www.sciencedaily.com/
• Newark airport program helps children with autism cope with air travel. Called the "Autism Explores" Program, it takes participants through all aspects of the flying experience without leaving the ground. In addition, the program teaches airport personnel about autism.
• Emirates Airline, the largest Middle East carrier,  trains its cabin crews to understand the needs of passengers with autism and disabilities. The training takes place in cooperation with the Dubai Autism Center.
• The University of Texas recently announced the development of a new Master's degree program in autism. It's intent is to train more students to assist children with autism.

Don't Worry; Be Happy; Brain Imaging May Catch Autism Sooner; Horseback Riding As Therapy

"I wish I can show you, when you are lonely or in darkness, the astonishing light of your own being."...Hafiz


How To Create A Happy Future For Your Child With Autism

Dr. Krysti DeZonia of the Training, Education and Research Institute (TERI) presented clear recommendations to ensure your child with autism has a happy future after you are gone.

• Be sure there are people in your child's life who are not paid to be there. Start now in developing strong circles of support.
• Develop your child's social skills. If not, life without you can be lonely and unhappy.
• Help your child develop a plethora of interests. In addition, ensure everyone knows about their favorite activities.
• Futures planning is not enough. It's as important to develop a life quality plan. You can learn more about life quality planning at http://www.terriinc.org/ and click on "Life Quality Services."
• Finally, help your child do things that society values. These include developing relationships with friends, the community and business owners to name just a few.

And Dr. DeZonia offers one last tip: Remember, you are more important to your child's present and future life quality than any therapy, plan or treatment.
(Autism Support Network)


Brain Imaging May Catch Autism Sooner

At this point in autism research, it's almost impossible to diagnose autism at six months. But that might change soon.

Researchers at the University of South Carolina at Chapel Hill, using a special kind of MRI on 15 babies who had a sibling with autism, found those babies had weaker connections.

"This is really before we can pick up any differences behaviorally," said Dr. Jason Wolf. "If we can go earlier and earlier in our interventions, we can prevent autism from fully manifesting" added Dr. Wolf.
(Click2Houston)

Devereux Celebrates Centennial; Autism Transition Handbook; Update on DSM-5 & ASD; Questions To Ask Your Teacher's Child Before School Ends; Young Adults With Autism Lack Jobs

"If you keep focusing on disabilities, you're going to miss most of what makes us who we really are: our abilities." Jerry Komar, Founder and Editor Autism News and Views

Happy Birthday Devereux!!!

Devereux, a leading behavioral health care organization serving individuals with developmental disabilities, is celebrating their centennial this year.

Devereux was founded in 1912 by Helena T. Devereux. At the time, she was a young Philadelphia school teacher. From a small classroom, the organization she founded has grown into one of the largest providers in the nation.

Autism News and Views congratulates Devereux for their enduring vision. Thank you Devereux for what you do each and every day---serving and supporting individuals with developmental disabilities. For more information on Devereux, visit http://www.devereux.org/


Devereux Provides Autism Transition Handbook
Devereux published a handbook and wiki to assist individuals with autism and their families to gain access to the most current and comprehensive information on the transition to adulthood. For more information, please visit http://www.autismhandbook.org/. You can also visit them on Facebook.

1 in 88 Now: Why Are Autism Rates Changing So Quickly?; Will A New Blood Test Help in Diagnosing Autism?; National Autism Leadership Conference; Good News in New Jersey

"Why do I hate terms like disability and disorder? Because those are 'glass-half empty' definitions. I prefer looking at the glass as half-full." Jerry Komar, Founder and Editor of Autism News and Views.

Why Are Rates of Autism Changing So Quickly?

I first asked myself that question last year after reading the study out of South Korea that found 1 in 38 children in South Korea were diagnosed with autism. This was largely attributed to the lack of early detection leaving many children undiagnosed. After having spent my entire career serving this population, I found myself scratching my head. 1 in 38? How can we go from 1 in 110 at the time to 1 in 38? That was a huge leap. After all, it was not too long ago, we were reporting rates of 1 in about 500 children. In fact, in some states, the rates of autism leaped almost 700% from the late 1980's to early 2003.

Then, this March, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported the rate of autism is actually 1 in 88. So I'm left back-tracking to my initial question. Why are rates of autism changing so quickly? It's undeniable that we've become more aware of autism. In addition, screening is much more sophisticated than it was just a decade ago. This enabled us to provide treatment much earlier. All of this also meant we expanded the definition of autism. But does this mean there's an actual increase or the result of how we diagnose autism. A researcher I heard interviewed not too long ago said just because a fisherman casts wider net and catches more fish does not necessarily mean there are more fish. In other words, when the net is cast wider, we will certainly capture more children, but do they all have autism or something else such as behavioral, learning/or social problems?

I'm not a researcher. Most of my experience has been in managing organizations and departments with a smattering of clinical work. So I'm not sophisticated enough to fully understand the methods used by scientists and researchers who come up with these numbers other than the reasons I listed above. There is no doubt that it's much easier for research facilities to receive federal and private dollars when these rates increase.  An increase in eligibility also increases the amount of money flowing into school services especially special education. And an increase in numbers also increases the amount of money flowing into agencies who advocate for individuals with autism.  Directly due to the increase in this funding, we've also made great strides in human dignity. We've been able to expand services, provide for better care and greatly reduce the social unacceptability faced by many individuals with autism. All of these and more are commendable outcomes.

But I'm also concerned about our credibility.  I don't want to see autism elevated as some type of fad or the "in" diagnosis to have. That's not what we're about. Labels don't help anyone. All we have to do is look at what labels did to people with developmental disabilities prior to several decades ago. An individual with autism is exactly that---an individual first and foremost. I don't want to see funding determine how we look at individuals. A dollar sign should not stigmatize anyone without autism. It should be used only to provide provide quality services to those in genuine need of those services and supports. Let's not include people in a diagnosis they do not deserve. We're better than that.  It's looking at the glass as being half full, not half empty.


Blood Test May Aid in Diagnosing Autism

Swedish researchers reported they have developed a new blood test that might aid in diagnosing autism. The researchers used mass spectrometry techniques to profile the proteins in children diagnosed with autism and compared them to profiles of children without autism. They found three differences unique to children with autism. It will be a year before the test becomes commercially available. (Digital Journal)

What Do We Now Know About Contributing Factors To Autism?; What Gifts Do Parents Think Are The Best?; The Cost of Raising A Child With Autism; Autism Brainstorm: An Autism Interactive Community

"Don't dis the ABILITY."  Jerry Komar, Editor Autism News and Views


Contributing Factors To Autism: What We Now Know

Within the last week, we've seen a study that suggests autism could be linked with mothers' obesity during pregnancy. Just a week earlier, news broke that the incidence of autism is actually 1 in 88, not 1 in 110. So these studies and more beg the next question: What do we NOW know about contributing factors to autism? We know the following with a high degree of certainty:

• We now know that about 15-20% of children have a genetic mutation that causes autism.
• We now know if parents have one child with autism, the risk of having a second child diagnosed with autism is almost 20% (U.C. Davis study)
• We also found that environmental pollution may be a factor in autism.
• We now know that both older fathers and mothers are a higher risk of having a child with autism. Studies from Harvard and Israel also suggest that infertility treatments are linked to a higher risk of autism.
• Prematurity and low birthweight (babies weighing less than 41/2 pounds ) was found to be linked to autism. 5% had been diagnosed with autism by age 21.
• Studies suggest that some medications increase the risk of autism. For example, a study published last year suggested children exposed prenatally to antidepressants had a higher risk of autism.
• Pediatrics released a study this week that suggests obesity during pregnancy would increase the incidence of autism to a 1 in 53 chance. (Note: While this study suggests maternal obesity may be a risk factor for autism, keep in mind it's only one of many and may not even be a strong link).

(USA TODAY & Washington Post)


What Gifts Do Parents Believe Are The Best For Children With Autism?