Some new Autism Treatments and Interventions

There are many established and new autism treatments and interventions in the domains of medicine, education and behavior. Biomedical interventions are those that focus on the physical needs of the person as a biomedical organism, addressing deficits or encouraging weaker pathways by medical or chemical means.

This summary covers some of the common biomedical interventions in current autism treatment, such as the gluten-free/casein-free diet, addressing food sensitivities, use of supplements, gut treatments, sulfation and immune system regulation. These treatments are summarized by an engineering scientist who volunteers his time to several autism research and affiliate activities, and who is also an experienced parent of a young adult with autism. Again, it is important to keep in mind that each person with autism is unique and may respond better to some treatments than others.

There are many established and new autism treatments and interventions in the domains of medicine, education, and behavior. Biomedical inventions are those that

The dramatic increase in the number of individuals identified with ASD has focused increased attention on the types of interventions that can lead to opportunities for a high quality of life. The Texas Statewide Leadership for Autism has compiled the Texas Autism Resource Guide for Effective Teaching (TARGET) which provides information on interventions for individuals with ASD. Recognizing the diversity of those with ASD, TARGET exercises a pragmatic approach to evidence-based practices:

"The best measure of effectiveness of an intervention is whether it is effective for a particular individual. It is of utmost importance to collect and analyze data when using interventions with a student with autism. If an intervention results in positive change for a particular student and you, as an educational professional, have data to support that, then the intervention is evidence-based for that student."

A report by the Ohio State University Project Team entitled Education Services for Military Dependent Children with Autism includes a comparison chart (created by Brenda Smith Myles, Ph.D) outlining and describing the evidence-based practices developed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the National Autism Center and the National Professional Development Center on ASD. 

http://www.autism-society.org/living-with-autism/treatment-options/related-approaches.html 

Acknowledging Bullying As a Problem

During this blog I will finish discussing research findings found within the academic journal article, “The causes and nature of bullying and social exclusion in schools” by Maria el Mar Badia Martin. First I will discuss a potential reason why new cases of school bullying keep emerging. Afterwards, I will discuss some elements that need to be addressed before schools can confront the issue of school bullying.

1)   The text notes that “despite [the] apparently high rates of victimization and the potential influence of [sibling bullying] experiences on peer relationships, sibling bullying has been relatively ignored [within] literature, perhaps because it is so common.” In my opinion this claim is very significant in understanding, and partially explaining, why new cases of school bullying keep emerging. One of the best ways to stop a problem is to prevent the problem from ever developing and occurring. However, as the text notes, this is not what has been happening with sibling bullying, which has been linked to school bullying. Instead, sibling bullying, a potential precursor to school bullying, has been mostly ignored and normalized by the general public. In addition, many scholars, investigators, and researchers have failed to conduct additional studies that investigate the correlations that may exist between sibling bullying and school bullying.

2)  Before schools can confront the issue of school bullying, some elements need to be addressed. According to the text,  research has shown that bullying occurs in all schools. However, before school bullying is confronted, it must be acknowledged as a possible problem. In other words, schools must acknowledge that they are not fault free and must be willing to accept the fact that bullying is a problem, or at least a potential problem, within their school system. A problem cannot and will not be solved, if it is not acknowledged first. In addition, research has shown that although “high profile [anti-school bullying] campaigns at national, local, or school level are useful ways of initiating action, on their own they do little or nothing to help [decrease the amount of bullying that occurs within schools]”. As a result, when trying to design a plan for diminishing school bullying it is important to keep in mind that although high profile anti-bullying campaigns may be useful in attracting attention and awareness to school bullying as a problem, they are not solutions. In fact, there is no "single-solution" or "one-size-fits-all solution" that can be applied to rid all schools of school bullying. Instead, each school must individually find out what strategies and actions will work best within its own school system.

Well this weekend I didn't hear of any shootings or killings in my city which is a great thing. I really hope that we can continue this pattern. There was though an unfortunate situation where my stepdaughter was threatened by another child where she stated she was going to get a gun and would shoot her. My stepdaughter is only 9 years old and I'm unaware of the age of the other little girl in which she didn't even know but allowed her to play with her and the other kids. The children are getting younger everyday and are living around bad influences, and that is so unfortunate.

Autism Costs Average $17,000 Yearly for Each Child

WebMD News from HealthDay

By Amy Norton

HealthDay Reporter

http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20140210/autism-costs-average-17000-yearly-for-each-child-study-finds?page=2 

MONDAY, Feb. 10, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- The cost of services for children with autism averages more than $17,000 per child each year -- with school systems footing much of the bill, a new U.S. study estimates.

Researchers found that compared to kids without autism, those with the disorder had higher costs for doctor visits and prescriptions -- an extra $3,000 a year, on average.

But the biggest expenses were outside the medical realm. "Non-health care" services averaged $14,000 per child, and special education at school accounted for more than 60 percent of those costs.

Past studies into the costs of autism have mainly focused on health care, said Tara Lavelle, a researcher at RAND Corp. in Arlington, Va., who led the new study published online Feb. 10 and in the March print issue of Pediatrics.

These findings, she said, give a more comprehensive view. Her team estimates that services for children with autism cost the United States $11.5 billion in 2011 alone.

"The societal cost is enormous," said Michael Rosanoff, associate director of public health research and scientific review for Autism Speaks, a New York City-based advocacy group.

And the dollar estimates from this study cover only children with autism -- not adults, noted Rosanoff, who was not involved in the research.

He said the findings do give a clearer idea of the costs to school systems, in particular. Now more work is needed to "dig deeper" into the issue, Rosanoff said. Some big questions, he noted, are whether school districts have the resources to handle the needs of all students with autism, and whether individual children are being well served.

In the United States, about one in every 88 children has an autism spectrum disorder, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The developmental disorders vary widely in severity. Some kids have "classic" autism, speaking very little, and showing repetitive, unusual behaviors like hand flapping; they may also be intellectually impaired. Other kids have average or above-average intelligence, but have difficulty with social interaction.

For the new study, Lavelle's team pulled data from two national surveys. They found information on 246 families with children affected by autism spectrum disorders, ranging from mild to severe, and close to 19,000 families with unaffected children.

In one survey, parents were asked about non-medical services for their kids -- from special education at school, to autism therapy sessions, to help with child care. Those costs turned out to be much bigger than medical care, with special ed being the single largest expense -- at $8,600 per year, on average.

There was one surprise in the findings, according to Lavelle: Parents of kids with autism spectrum disorders reported no greater out-of-pocket expenses than other parents, on average.

"That's inconsistent with previous research, which has found higher out-of-pocket costs," Lavelle said. She noted that this study had a fairly small sample of families affected by autism, and that might have prevented the researchers from finding substantial differences in parents' expenses.

Rosanoff agreed that the finding is surprising. But he said it's possible that this latest study reflects progress in getting insurers to pay for autism therapies.

As it stands, 34 U.S. states have now passed "autism insurance reform laws," according to Autism Speaks. Several others are considering such legislation.

"This study could suggest that autism insurance reform is working," Rosanoff said.

Lavelle said more studies are needed to see how families are coping financially. As for schools, she said very little is known about whether districts have the resources they need to serve all their students with autism.

Rosanoff said one potential way to lessen the burden on schools would be to improve early diagnosis and treatment of autism.

Diagnosing an autism spectrum disorder can be difficult, since there's no simple test for it. According to the CDC, autism can sometimes be diagnosed by the age of 18 months, but many children do not receive a final diagnosis until they are much older.

The agency says that all children should be screened for developmental delays during routine check-ups, starting at the age of 9 months. Such screening could help in detecting an autism spectrum disorder sooner.

If children can be diagnosed early, Rosanoff said, they can begin therapy well ahead of school age. That might ease their reliance on special education once they do enter school, he said.

Asperger's-no longer a form of Autism

Asperger's syndrome is to be dropped from the psychiatrists' Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) of Mental Disorders, the American publication that is one of the most influential references for the profession around the world.

The term "Asperger's disorder" will not appear in the DSM-5, the latest revision of the manual, and instead its symptoms will come under the newly added "autism spectrum disorder", which is already used widely. That umbrella diagnosis will include children with severe autism, who often do not talk or interact, as well as those with milder forms.

The British hacker Gary McKinnon is diagnosed with Asperger's and it contributed to a government decision not to extradite him from Britain to the US on cybercrime charges.

The DSM is used in a number of countries to varying degrees. Psychiatrists in some countries including Britain use the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) published by the World Health Organisation or a combination of both handbooks.

In other changes to the DSM, abnormally bad and frequent temper tantrums will be diagnosed as DMDD, meaning disruptive mood dysregulation disorder. Supporters say it will address concerns about too many children being misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder and treated with powerful psychiatric drugs.

The revisions come in the first major rewrite in nearly 20 years of the diagnostic guide used by psychiatrists in the US and other countries. The changes were approved on Saturday.

Full details of all the revisions will come in May 2013 when the American Psychiatric Association's new diagnostic manual is published. The changes will affect the diagnosis and treatment of millions of children and adults worldwide, as well as medical insurance and special education services.

The aim was not to expand the number of people diagnosed with mental illness but to ensure those affected were more accurately diagnosed so they could get the most appropriate treatment, said Dr David Kupfer, the University of Pittsburgh psychiatry professor who chaired the revision committee.

One of the most hotly argued changes was how to define the various ranges of autism. Some on the panel opposed the idea of dropping the specific diagnosis for Asperger's. People with that disorder often have high intelligence and vast knowledge on narrow subjects but lack social skills. Some Asperger's families opposed any change, fearing their children will lose a diagnosis and no longer be eligible for special services, but experts have said this will not be the case.

People with dyslexia also were closely watching for the update. Many with the reading disorder did not want their diagnosis dropped, and it will not be. Instead, the new manual will have a broader learning disorder category to cover several conditions including dyslexia, which causes difficulty understanding letters and recognising written words.

The shorthand name for the new edition, the organisation's fifth revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, is DSM-5. Group leaders say specifics will not be disclosed until the manual is published but they confirmed some changes. A 2000 edition of the manual made minor changes but the last major edition was published in 1994.

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/dec/02/aspergers-syndrome-dropped-psychiatric-dsm 

Defining Individuals According to Bullying

           In the previous blog I discussed some statistics regarding bullies and bully victims. However, I noticed that the academic journal article “The causes and nature of bullying and social exclusion in schools” by Maria el Mar Badia Martin uses peculiar classifications for various degrees of bully involvement. As a result, in order to clarify the statistics found within the previous blog, I will discuss the different types of individuals that exist according to Badia Martin’s academic journal article.

           According to Badia Martin individuals can be classified as the following:

1)      Bullies – These are individuals who are frequently involved in bullying others, but are never or rarely victimized.

2)      Victims – These are individuals who are frequently victimized, but who never or rarely bully others.

3)      Bully/Victims – These are individuals who frequently bully others and become victims of bullying.

4)      Neutrals – These are individuals who neither bully others, nor become victims of bullying themselves.

As can be seen, the definitions that exist regarding individuals and their relationship to bullying are rather intricate. It is interesting to note the varying degrees of involvement a single person can assume within the realm of bullying, from having absolutely no involvement, to being both "the bully" and "the bullied". The definition of the bully/victim is extremely interesting, because a single person assumes the position of the “perpetrator” and “victim” of bullying. Perhaps, the bullying behavior exhibited by the bully/victim is a form of retaliation for bullying done onto them. If this is true, it might explain one mechanism of how bullying perpetuates into a seemingly endless cycle.

Exams and Tests for Children with Autism

All children should have routine developmental exams done by their pediatrician. Further testing may be needed if the doctor or parents are concerned. This is particularly true if a child fails to meet any of the following language milestones:

• Babbling by 12 months
• Gesturing (pointing, waving bye-bye) by 12 months
• Saying single words by 16 months
• Saying two-word spontaneous phrases by 24 months (not just echoing)
• Losing any language or social skills at any age

These children might receive a hearing evaluation, blood lead test, and screening test for autism (such as the Checklist for Autism in Toddlers [CHAT] or the Autism Screening Questionnaire).

A health care provider experienced in diagnosing and treating autism is usually needed to make the actual diagnosis. Because there is no biological test for autism, the diagnosis will often be based on very specific criteria from a book called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV.

An evaluation of autism will often include a complete physical and nervous system (neurologic) examination. It may also include a specific screening tool, such as:

• Autism Diagnostic Interview - Revised (ADI-R)
• Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS)
• Childhood Autism rating Scale (CARS)
• Gilliam Autism Rating Scale
• Pervasive Developmental Disorders Screening Test - Stage 3

Children with known or suspected autism will often have genetic testing (looking for chromosome abnormalities) and may have metabolic testing.

Autism includes a broad spectrum of symptoms. Therefore, a single, brief evaluation cannot predict a child's true abilities. Ideally, a team of different specialists will evaluate the child. They might evaluate:

• Communication
• Language
• Motor skills
• Speech
• Success at school
• Thinking abilities

Sometimes people are reluctant to have a child diagnosed because of concerns about labeling the child. However, without a diagnosis the child may not get the necessary treatment and services.