1. Byiers BJ, Tervo RC, Feyma TJ, Symons FJ. {{Seizures and Pain Uncertainty Associated With Parenting Stress and Rett Syndrome}}. {Journal of child neurology}. 2013 Jan 9.
Data were collected parenting stress, adaptive behavior, pain, and health issues from the caregivers of 35 girls and women with Rett syndrome (mean age = 20.3). A majority (60%) of parents reported stress in the clinical range on at least 1 subscale of the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form. Seizures and uncertainty about their daughter’s gastrointestinal pain experience were significantly associated with higher levels of parenting stress. No other child factors (adaptive behavior, age, residential status) were significantly related to parenting stress. Factors related to chronic health concerns (seizures, ambiguous pain presentation) may be important when considering family stress issues in relation to general outcomes for girls with Rett syndrome and related developmental disorders.
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2. Chater A, Stein S, Chowdhury U. {{Take note of the fuss: selective eating and autistic spectrum disorders}}. {Community practitioner : the journal of the Community Practitioners’ & Health Visitors’ Association}. 2012 Dec;85(12):37-9.
Selective eating in children can be a huge concern for parents. In most cases the problem is self-limiting and it can be associated with a developmental disorder. This article presents observations from two case studies from a child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) in the south east of England that link selective eating with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD). It concludes with recommendations to consider ASD, alongside dietetic advice, when a child is presenting with selective eating.
3. Jones L, Totsika V, Hastings RP, Petalas MA. {{Gender Differences When Parenting Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Multilevel Modeling Approach}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2013 Jan 10.
Parenting a child with autism may differentially affect mothers and fathers. Existing studies of mother-father differences often ignore the interdependence of data within families. We investigated gender differences within-families using multilevel linear modeling. Mothers and fathers of children with autism (161 couples) reported on their own well-being, and their child’s functioning. Mothers reported higher levels of distress compared with fathers, and child behavior problems predicted psychological distress for both mothers and fathers. We found little evidence of child functioning variables affecting mothers and fathers differently. Gender differences in the impact of child autism on parents appear to be robust. More family systems research is required to fully understand these gender differences and the implications for family support.
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4. Langridge AT, Glasson EJ, Nassar N, Jacoby P, Pennell C, Hagan R, Bourke J, Leonard H, Stanley FJ. {{Maternal conditions and perinatal characteristics associated with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability}}. {PLoS One}. 2013;8(1):e50963.
BACKGROUND: As well as being highly comorbid conditions, autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and intellectual disability (ID) share a number of clinically-relevant phenomena. This raises questions about similarities and overlap in diagnosis and aetiological pathways that may exist for both conditions. AIMS: To examine maternal conditions and perinatal factors for children diagnosed with an ASD, with or without ID, and children with ID of unknown cause, compared with unaffected children. METHODS: The study population comprised all live singleton births in Western Australia (WA) between January 1984 and December 1999 (N = 383,153). Univariate and multivariate multinomial logistic regression models were applied using a blocked modelling approach to assess the effect of maternal conditions, sociodemographic factors, labour and delivery characteristics and neonatal outcomes. RESULTS: In univariate analyses mild-moderate ID was associated with pregnancy hypertension, asthma, urinary tract infection, some types of ante-partum haemorrhage, any type of preterm birth, elective C-sections, breech presentation, poor fetal growth and need for resuscitation at birth, with all factors showing an increased risk. Severe ID was positively associated with poor fetal growth and need for resuscitation, as well as any labour or delivery complication. In the multivariate analysis no maternal conditions or perinatal factors were associated with an increased risk of ASD without ID. However, pregnancy hypertension and small head circumference were associated with a reduced risk (OR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.43, 0.94; OR = 0.58, 95% CI: 0.34, 0.96, respectively). For ASD with ID, threatened abortion before 20 weeks gestation and poor fetal growth were associated with an increased risk. CONCLUSION: Findings show that indicators of a poor intrauterine environment are associated with an elevated risk of ID, while for ASD, and particularly ASD without ID, the associations are much weaker. As such, these findings highlight the importance of accounting for the absence or presence of ID when examining ASD, if we are to improve our understanding of the causal pathways associated with these conditions.
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5. Lopez M, Bellando J. {{An informal survey on family/caregiver wishes for individuals with autism in Arkansas}}. {The Journal of the Arkansas Medical Society}. 2012 Dec;109(7):137-9.
Families/caregivers of children with ASD experience problems and disparities in healthcare and service delivery first hand. As a result, they can provide valuable input in the development of a system that best meets the needs of these children. Results from an informal, open response survey completed by participants of the 2011 Autism Speaks Walk in Little Rock most commonly identified the need for better quality educational/interventional services and the need to develop or transform community assets to be more knowledgeable and supportive of individuals with autism as major gaps in the system of care for their children.
6. Massand E, Bowler DM, Mottron L, Hosein A, Jemel B. {{ERP Correlates of Recognition Memory in Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2013 Jan 10.
Recognition memory in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) tends to be undiminished compared to that of typically developing (TD) individuals (Bowler et al. 2007), but it is still unknown whether memory in ASD relies on qualitatively similar or different neurophysiology. We sought to explore the neural activity underlying recognition by employing the old/new word repetition event-related potential effect. Behavioural recognition performance was comparable across both groups, and demonstrated superior recognition for low frequency over high frequency words. However, the ASD group showed a parietal rather than anterior onset (300-500 ms), and diminished right frontal old/new effects (800-1500 ms) relative to TD individuals. This study shows that undiminished recognition performance results from a pattern of differing functional neurophysiology in ASD.
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7. Mulle JG, Sharp WG, Cubells JF. {{The gut microbiome: a new frontier in autism research}}. {Current psychiatry reports}. 2013 Feb;15(2):337.
The human gut harbors a complex community of microbes that profoundly influence many aspects of growth and development, including development of the nervous system. Advances in high-throughput DNA sequencing methods have led to rapidly expanding knowledge about this gut microbiome. Here, we review fundamental emerging data on the human gut microbiome, with a focus on potential interactions between the microbiome and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and consider research on atypical patterns of feeding and nutrition in ASD and how they might interact with the microbiome. Finally we selectively survey results from studies in rodents on the impact of the microbiome on neurobehavioral development. The evidence reviewed here suggests that a deeper understanding of the gut microbiome could open up new avenues of research on ASD, including potential novel treatment strategies.
