Autism Spectrum Disorders

We’re told that video games are the downfall of today’s youth, but is it possible that there are video games that can help advance today’s youth? Well, researchers at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia wanted to test exactly that, and thus Project: EVO was born.

They used a fairly new branch of medicine known as “digital medicine.” According to DW Shaffer at the U.S. National Library of Medicine, “…”digital medicine” [is medicine] that is potentially more precise, more effective, more experimental, more widely distributed, and more egalitarian than current medical practice. Critical steps in the creation of digital medicine are careful analysis of the impact of new technologies and coordinated efforts to direct technological development towards creating a new paradigm of medical care.” The researchers set out to prove whether or not digital medicine could be used as an investigational treatment for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and co-occurring attention/deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

It is statistically proven that as many as 50 percent of children on the autism spectrum experience symptoms of ADHD, with about 30 percent of said children receiving a secondary diagnosis of ADHD. ADHD medications are far less effective, however, in children with both disorders than in those with only ADHD, which led researchers to conduct a study exploring alternative treatments.

The study included 19 children aged 9-13 who had each been diagnosed on the spectrum and experienced co-occurring ADHD symptoms. The care givers of each child, were asked to submit reports of his/her child’s ADHD symptoms, as well as his/her child’s ability to both plan and carry out specific tasks. Participants in the study were given either the Project: EVO treatment, which is delivered via an action video game experience, or an educational activity involving pattern recognition. The researchers were using the TOVA API score, an FDA-cleared objective, to measure each child’s attention.

“Our study showed that children engaged with the Project: EVO treatment for the recommended amount of time, and that parents and children reported high rates of satisfaction with the treatment,” Benjamin Yerys, Ph.D., a child psychologist at CHOP’s Center for Autism Research (CAR) and first and corresponding author on the study. “Based on the promising study results, we look forward to continuing to evaluate the potential for Project: EVO as a new treatment option for children with ASD and ADHD.”

The overall conclusion of the study, found that children engaged with the treatment for 95% of the recommended treatment sessions. The study also found that upon using Project: EVO, children showed improved attention both quantitatively (on the TOVA API score) and qualitatively, with a noticeable reduction of ADHD symptoms. Both parents and children deemed Project: EVO a worthwhile approach for treatment. Though the sample size of the study was small, the study showed that using Project: EVO was both feasible and acceptable; with potentially therapeutic effects.

The Movie of Autism

By Thans

On January 20, 2014

In Student Post

Stacking repetitively is a behavior often associated with Autism

According to a recent study, “children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have trouble integrating simultaneous information from their eyes and their ears,” which has been compared to by Stephen Camarata, Ph.D., professor of Hearing and Speech Sciences at Vanderbilt as similar to, “watching a foreign movie that was badly dubbed.” This study was recently published by Mark Wallace, Ph.D., director of the Vanderbilt Brain Institute and co-authored by Camarata. Their work is incredibly important in the field of diseases such as Autism. Unlike many other

researchers, Wallace and his team have focused on sensory function. Their experiment involved putting groups of children, both with normal function and with high functioning Autism and putting them through a variety of audiovisual stimuli that included, “simple flashes and beeps, more complex environmental stimuli like a hammer hitting a nail, and speech stimuli.” After these tests were done, the researchers asked the subjects to identify which auditory and which visual stimuli occurred at the same time. These test showed that children with Autism have, an :enlargement in something known as the temporal binding window (TBW),” which means they have trouble associating sights and sounds with specific times.

A second aspect of the study also showed that children have trouble associating visual and auditory stimuli from speech, which may have something to do with their constant covering of their ears. Although the data here is not conclusive, it has lead the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition to add sensory processing as a key problem for those who suffer from Autism. The whole study has opened up a new field of inquiry on Autism studies and has the possibility of leading to new advances with other psychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia.

Are premature babies a precursor for autism?

By 12whiteal

On October 25, 2011

In Student Post

At one point in history premature babies were at a high risk of mortality. They’re organs are not fully developed and they can get very sick easily. However, now the cute less than four pound babies have a lower risk of morality because of improvements in science and technology. Nevertheless premature babies have a new problem to worry about. Current research at the University of Pennsylvania nursing school has confirmed that low birth weight has a strong connection with autism. This study was conducted between 1984 and 1987, 21 years, in certain counties in New Jersey. They followed 862 children from birth to young adults and found that five percent had autism spectrum disorders, the umbrella of autistic disorders like Aspergers disorder, Rett’s syndrome and Autistic disorder. Since some premature babies are not fully developed their brains might not have undergone full development in the cognitive and social parts of the brain. Dr. Pinto-Martin warned the public that “If there is suspicion of autism or a positive screening test for ASD, parents shold seek an evaluation for an ASD. Early intervention improves long-term outcome and can help these children both at school and at home”. What do you guys think? Is five percent of 832 children a good enough sign to say that premature babies and autism spectrum disorders have a link?

BioQuakes

AP Biology class blog for discussing current research in Biology

Tag: Autism Spectrum Disorders

Video Games: Can They Be Beneficial to a Child’s Learning and Development?

The Movie of Autism

Are premature babies a precursor for autism?

Archives