For many years, my colleagues and I have been studying a single-gene condition called tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) that is strongly associated with autism and developmental challenges. We found in earlier studies that we could identify predictors of autism in the first year of life, motivating the first randomized clinical trial of early intervention for these infants. However, we […]
The World Health Organization rolled out its 11th edition of disease classifications, the “International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems,” on 18 June, adding conditions such as ‘gaming disorder’ to the roster. The codes associated with conditions in the manual are “the bedrock for health statistics,” the organization says, because “any injury or disease we […]
Researchers let out a collective sigh of relief this week when U.S. congressional leaders settled on a 2017 budget that includes a $2 billion boost for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The deal sidestepped a government shutdown and reversed a proposed $1.2 billion cut to the NIH budget. But as The Washington Post reports, the battle for funds isn’t […]
Adults with autism tend to have a different set of psychiatric conditions than do those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a study of more than 1 million people suggests1. Autism and ADHD often overlap and may share biological roots. The new findings may help clinicians spot the conditions that differ among these individuals, such as depression and anxiety, and […]
Two new studies use medical records from countries with nationalized health care to link autoimmune disease and obesity in parents to the likelihood of having a child with autism. The first study, published online in October in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, looked at 129,733 children born in hospitals in Nova Scotia, Canada, between 1990 […]
Apps spell big business in the healthcare industry: Dozens of apps are marketed to people with conditions including depression, anxiety and autism. And Google parent company Alphabet announced Friday that it will buy wearable fitness tracker company FitBit. But many app developers sell users’ data, including their name, medical status and sex, to third parties such […]
When Toni and Jim Hoy adopted their son Daniel through the foster-care system, he was an affectionate toddler. They did not plan to give him back to the state of Illinois, ever. “Danny was this cute, lovable little blond-haired, blue-eyed baby,” Jim says. Toni recalls times Daniel would reach over, put his hands on her […]
“I don’t have any history of cancer in my family, so it wasn’t something I was on the lookout for,” Ramirez says, sitting outside the library of her alma mater, Arizona State University. Ramirez was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when she was 23. Now, more than a decade later, she’s healthy and so are her […]
A panel of autism scientists and advocates is charged with a tall order: making recommendations for the care of autistic people worldwide. The panel is slated to meet for the first time today after the 2019 International Society for Autism Research annual meeting in Montreal. Convened by the journal The Lancet, the group includes more than 20 of the […]
In the United States, 117 people from 13 states contracted measles between 1 January and 15 July of this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In the same time period, 45 states and the District of Columbia reported 3,886 mumps infections. In 2015, there were 20,762 reported cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, in […]
Young people with autism have more psychiatric and medical conditions than do their typical peers or those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a new study suggests1. The early onset of these problems suggests they do not stem solely from a lifetime of poor healthcare, says lead researcher Lisa Croen, director of the Autism Research Program […]
Kieley Parker never imagined she would need an antidepressant. “I always win those stupid sunshine and happiest person awards. People see me as an incredibly joyful person,” she says. But in fall 2014, Parker left her job as a third-grade teacher and moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, with her fiancé. Starting over in a new city […]
