1. Debi Ann A, Udayakumar N, Senta C, Rajanandh MG. {{Pyridoxine and Magnesium Administration-Induced Hyperactivity in Two Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Case Reports From a Clinical Trial}}. {Clinical therapeutics}. 2020.
PURPOSE: Pyridoxine hydrochloride and magnesium sulfate (pyridoxine-Mg) have been used for the management of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We present a case report of 2 children with ASD who were administered pyridoxine-Mg for 2 months. METHODS: The Childhood Autism Rating Scale, Second Edition, was used to confirm the adverse reaction. The Naranjo Adverse Drug Reaction Probability Scale was used to assess causality. RESULTS: Children were reported by their parents as being hyperactive. Evaluation by the psychologist using the Childhood Autism Rating Scale, Second Edition, also confirmed the reaction. According to the Naranjo scale, hyperactivity had a possible and probable association with pyridoxine-Mg for child 1 and 2, respectively. IMPLICATIONS: A probable to possible association exists between hyperactivity and pyridoxine-Mg. Clinical Trial Registry-India identifier: CTRI/2019/07/020102.
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2. Dyrda K, Lucci KD, Bieniek-Pocielej R, Bryńska A. {{Therapeutic programs aimed at developing the theory of mind in patients with autism spectrum disorders – available methods and their effectiveness}}. {Psychiatria polska}. 2020; 54(3): 591-602.
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by the presence of deficits in social skills and communication as well as repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. Among the theories explaining the mechanisms of the formation of the above cited symptoms, an important role is attributed to the theory of the mind, or the ability to draw conclusions about the state of mind of other people, assigning mental states to others and interpreting their behaviors. According to guidelines of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the therapeutic procedures in autism spectrum disorders, the proceedings include various methods, adjusted to the level of functioning and presented difficulties. In the most widely used behavioral social skills trainings, the goal is to practice behaviors using modelling and role-playing techniques. Less attention is devoted to the issue of social understanding, theory of mind or the cognitive aspects of therapeutic interventions. There are studies demonstrating the possibility of developing competence in the theory of mind in people with ASD, as well as generalizing the acquired skills. The article reviews the literature on the use of therapeutic programs aimed at developing the theory of mind in patients with ASD and their effectiveness. As it seems, these are promising interventions, although they require further assessment.
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3. Ellis Weismer S, Rubenstein E, Wiggins L, Durkin MS. {{A Preliminary Epidemiologic Study of Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder Relative to Autism Spectrum Disorder and Developmental Disability Without Social Communication Deficits}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2020.
The goal of this preliminary investigation was to compare demographic and clinical characteristics in a sample of children with likely Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder (SCD) (N = 117) to those in children with possible (N = 118) and some (N = 126) SCD traits, other developmental delay (DD) (N = 91) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (N = 642). We used data from the Study to Explore Early Development (SEED), a multi-site case-control study. Items reflecting SCD DSM-5 criteria were selected from an autism diagnostic measure, with SCD categories identified by creating quartiles. Our results suggest that SCD may fall along a continuum involving elevated deficits (in comparison to DD with no SCD) in social communication and restricted and repetitive behavior that do not reach the clinical threshold for ASD.
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4. Ersoy M, Charman T, Pasco G, Carr E, Johnson MH, Jones EJH. {{Developmental Paths to Anxiety in an Autism-Enriched Infant Cohort: The Role of Temperamental Reactivity and Regulation}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2020.
The aim of this study was to explore the associations between temperamental reactivity and regulation and the emergence of anxiety traits in a longitudinal sample of infants enriched for later ASD. Parents of 143 infants who were at high- and low-risk for ASD rated their child’s temperament traits when they were 9, 15 and 24 months old; they rated anxiety and ASD traits when they were 36 months old. The findings suggest that behavioural inhibition may be an early predictor of later anxiety in children with and without ASD and that lower levels of effortful control in children who later develop ASD may contribute to the higher expression of anxiety within this population.
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5. Mason LA, Zimiga BM, Anders-Jefferson R, Paap KR. {{Autism Traits Predict Self-reported Executive Functioning Deficits in Everyday Life and an Aversion to Exercise}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2020.
Are Autism Quotient (AQ) scores related to executive functioning (EF)? We sampled 200 students of normal intelligence and examined the relationship between AQ scores and: (a) 5 self-ratings of EF, (b) 5 performance-based measures of EF, and (c) 5 types of activities or experiences that are assumed to recruit EF and sometimes enhance EF. Our findings reveal that as AQ scores increase, self-rated EF ability decreases. AQ scores and self-reported EF measures do not correlate with objective EF task performance. Furthermore, AQ scores were shown to be negatively associated with many specific types of physical activity. As AQ scores increase, individuals report fewer positive reasons for exercise and more rationalizations for not engaging in more exercise.
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6. Scheerer NE, Jones JA, Iarocci G. {{Exploring the Relationship between Prosodic Control and Social Competence in Children with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {Autism Res}. 2020.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and interaction. Speech is an important form of social communication. Prosody (e.g. vocal pitch, rhythm, etc.), one aspect of the speech signal, is crucial for ensuring information about the emotionality, excitability, and intent of the speaker, is accurately expressed. The objective of this study was to gain a better understanding of how auditory information is used to regulate speech prosody in autistic and non-autistic children, while exploring the relationship between the prosodic control of speech and social competence. Eighty autistic (M = 8.48 years, SD = 2.55) and non-autistic (M = 7.36 years, SD = 2.51) participants produced vocalizations while exposed to unaltered and frequency altered auditory feedback. The parent-report Multidimensional Social Competence Scale was used to assess social competence, while the Autism-Spectrum Quotient and the Autism Spectrum Rating Scales were used to assess autism characteristics. Results indicate that vocal response magnitudes and vocal variability were similar across autistic and non-autistic children. However, autistic children produced significantly faster responses to the auditory feedback manipulation. Hierarchical multiple regressions indicated that these faster responses were significantly associated with poorer parent-rated social competence and higher autism characteristics. These findings suggest that prosodic speech production differences are present in at least a subgroup of autistic children. These results represent a key step in understanding how atypicalities in the mechanisms supporting speech production may manifest in social-communication deficits, as well as broader social competence, and vice versa. LAY SUMMARY: In this study, autistic and non-autistic children produced vowel sounds while listening to themselves through headphones. When the children heard their vocal pitch shifted upward or downward, they compensated by shifting their vocal pitch in the opposite direction. Interestingly, autistic children were faster to correct for the perceived vowel sound changes than their typically developing peers. Faster responses in the children with ASD were linked to poorer ratings of their social abilities by their parent. These results suggest that autistic and non-autistic children show differences in how quickly they control their speech, and these differences may be related to the social challenges experienced by autistic children.
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7. Stephens K, Silk TJ, Anderson V, Hazell P, Enticott PG, Sciberras E. {{Associations Between Limbic System White Matter Structure and Socio-Emotional Functioning in Children with ADHD + ASD}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2020.
Children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) combined with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptoms (ADHD + ASD) have poorer social and emotional functioning than those with ADHD alone. However, no studies have specifically examined the associations between ASD symptoms, measures of social and emotional functioning and limbic system white matter microstructure. Tractography on the cingulum, uncinate fasciculus and fornix were performed for 151 children with (N = 78) and without (N = 73) ADHD. Participants in the ADHD group who scored 11 or above on the Social Communication Questionnaire were classified as the ADHD + ASD group (N = 16). Significant differences in mean cingulum FA were present between the control group and the ADHD (all) group, however, no significant differences were seen between the ADHD and ADHD + ASD groups. Despite this, significant associations were seen between mean FA of the left cingulum and emotional problems for the ADHD + ASD group. Results give greater insights into the specific biological basis of emotional problems in the ADHD + ASD group, indicating that the cingulum may play a role.
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8. Taresh SM, Ahmad NA, Roslan S, Ma’rof AM. {{Preschool Teachers’ Beliefs towards Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Yemen}}. {Children (Basel, Switzerland)}. 2020; 7(10).
It is perplexing that some preschool teachers not only advise parents who have children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to go to religious healers, but also attribute such neurological disorders to the curse of the « evil eye » or vaccines. Although it is now the twentieth century, this behavior simply reflects the concerns of over-protective teachers and the cultural misperceptions about the actual definition of ASD. In Yemen, the term « ASD », with its wide range of symptoms, is still ambiguous among preschool teachers. Thus, in a rather insightful piece for the education community, this study has attempted to look beneath the surface of the beliefs (religious belief-social belief-personal belief) of Yemeni preschool teachers regarding ASD. Based on the data collected from 213 teachers (20-3031-40-~≥40 age) in the Taiz district, this study found that misconceptions specific to autism spectrum disorder were strongly evidenced among teachers who taught preschoolers. Due to personal ignorance and growing superstitions, these teachers tend to believe the society’s perceptions of ASD, thus resulting in the ignorance of scientific views. However, the mass media can increase this group’s awareness of ASD by continually assessing the inaccurate views on ASD, and correcting them. And by influencing the teachers to take a more conceptual scientific approach in serving their special needs students, furthermore, by informing preschool teachers of children’s rights in normal life in the future through providing children with an optimal chance of development by early intervention.
