Autonomic responses of autistic children to people and objects

Hirstein, William; Iversen, Portia; Ramachandran, Vilayanur S.

doi:10.1098/rspb.2001.1724

Cited by 256 publications

(239 citation statements)

References 36 publications

(41 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

203

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Our finding of abnormal autonomic activity, as indexed by SCR, in the ASD group complements and extends previous findings of sympathetic/parasympathetic imbalance in this disorder (Eilam-Stock, et al, 2014; Hirstein, et al, 2001; Kylliainen and Hietanen, 2006). Specifically, we observed increased pain-related SCR, yet lower levels of SCR related to watching all images of body parts in participants with ASD.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Using this model, our findings indicate increased autonomic arousal indexed by SCR when observing others’ pain and decreased overall SCR in ASD participants. Therefore, our results suggest a more complex autonomic profile than previously postulated (Eilam-Stock, et al, 2014; Hirstein, et al, 2001; Kylliainen and Hietanen, 2006), in which sympathetic activity is decreased at baseline in ASD, with dysregulated, heightened sympathetic responses and arousal when viewing others’ pain. These results are consistent with our previous finding of reduced number of non-specific (non-task-evoked) SCRs during rest in participants with ASD (Eilam-Stock, et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 44%

“…Specifically, we observed increased pain-related SCR, yet lower levels of SCR related to watching all images of body parts in participants with ASD. In contrast to earlier studies (Hirstein et al, 2001; Kylliainen and Hietanen, 2006), we used GLM to analyze event-related SCR in the present study. This is a more sophisticated model than previously used methods, which is highly suitable for event-related designs, as it allows the deconvolution of the slow SCR function as a response to the onset of the events (Bach, et al, 2010).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Autonomic and brain responses associated with empathy deficits in autism spectrum disorder

Eilam‐Stock

Zhou

et al. 2015

Human Brain Mapping

110

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Accumulating evidence suggests that autonomic signals and their cortical representations are closely linked to emotional processes, and that related abnormalities could lead to social deficits. Although socio-emotional impairments are a defining feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), empirical evidence directly supporting the link between autonomic, cortical, and socio-emotional abnormalities in ASD is still lacking. In this study, we examined autonomic arousal indexed by skin conductance responses (SCR), concurrent cortical responses measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging, and effective brain connectivity estimated by dynamic causal modeling, in seventeen un-medicated high-functioning adults with ASD and seventeen matched controls, while they performed an empathy-for-pain task. Compared to controls, adults with ASD showed enhanced SCR related to empathetic pain, along with increased neural activity in the anterior insular cortex, although their behavioral empathetic pain discriminability was reduced and overall SCR was decreased. ASD individuals also showed enhanced correlation between SCR and neural activities in the anterior insula. Importantly, significant group differences in effective brain connectivity were limited to greater reduction in the negative intrinsic connectivity of the anterior insular cortex in the ASD group, indicating a failure in attenuating anterior insular responses to empathetic pain. These results suggest that aberrant interoceptive precision, as indexed by abnormalities in autonomic activity and its central representations, may underlie empathy deficits in ASD.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 44%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Autonomic and brain responses associated with empathy deficits in autism spectrum disorder

Eilam‐Stock

Zhou

et al. 2015

Human Brain Mapping

110

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Individuals with ASD are known to react to emotionally aversive situations with behaviors that serve escape functions [Jahromi, Meek, & Ober-Reynolds, 2012], and inhibiting prosocial emotion-expressive behavior is also more common in individuals with ASD than in TD peers [Samson et al, 2012]. Individuals with ASD have been noted to have an overall higher rate of physiological arousal, making the regulation of emotional responses more difficult [Bal et al, 2010;Hirstein, Iversen, & Ramachandran, 2001;Kylliainen & Hietanen, 2006]. This arousal may also be influenced by hyper-or hyporesponsivity to environmental (e.g.…”

Section: Modal Model Of Ermentioning

confidence: 99%

A Systematic Literature Review of Emotion Regulation Measurement in Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder

2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Emotion regulation (ER) difficulties are a potential common factor underlying the presentation of multiple emotional and behavioral problems in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). To provide an overview of how ER has been studied in individuals with ASD, we conducted a systematic review of the past 20 years of ER research in the ASD population, using established keywords from the most comprehensive ER literature review of the typically developing population to date. Out of an initial sampling of 305 studies, 32 were eligible for review. We examined the types of methods (self-report, informant report, naturalistic observation/ behavior coding, physiological, and open-ended) and the ER constructs based on Gross and Thompson's modal model (situation selection, situation modification, attention deployment, cognitive change, and response modulation). Studies most often assessed ER using one type of method and from a unidimensional perspective. Across the 32 studies, we documented the types of measures used and found that 38% of studies used self-report, 44% included an informant report measure, 31% included at least one naturalistic observation/behavior coding measure, 13% included at least one physiological measure, and 13% included at least one open-ended measure. Only 25% of studies used more than one method of measurement. The findings of the current review provide the field with an in-depth analysis of various ER measures and how each measure taps into an ER framework. Future research can use this model to examine ER in a multicomponent way and through multiple methods. Autism Res 2014, 7: 629-648 [American Psychiatric Association, 2013], and there is considerable evidence that the majority also struggle with associated emotional problems. For instance, in a population derived cohort of 5-to 16-year-olds, Totsika, Hastings, Emerson, Lancaster, and Berridge [2011] found that 85% of youth with ASD without an intellectual disability (ID) had clinically significant levels of hyperactivity, 74% of emotional problems, and 64% of conduct problems, compared to much lower rates in a typically developing comparison group (19% hyperactivity, 18% emotional problems, and 22% conduct problems). Further, youth with ID and ASD had higher rates of emotional disorders than those with only ID (88% vs. 63% for hyperactivity, 71% vs. 42% for emotional problems, and 65% vs. 46% for conduct problems, respectively). There is also considerable co-occurrence of multiple emotional problems in individuals with ASD. Approximately 40-50% of youth with ASD are estimated to meet criteria for two or more psychiatric disorders, often combining attentional or behavioral problems (e.g. ADHD) with internalizing problems (e.g. anxiety disorder), even after taking into account symptoms that may be related to core ASD sociocommunicative and behavioral symptoms [Leyfer et al., 2006;Simonoff et al., 2008].

show abstract

“…Hirstein et al (2001) suggested that an excessively functioning amygdala may account for the increased autonomic responses in autistic children (Hirstein et al, 2001;Corbett et al, 2006) and the consequent enhanced stress may lead to their withdrawal from an overstimulating world. The present study suggests that enhanced anxiety and fear processing could perhaps further amplify an aversion to complex environmental stimulation typical of social conditions, leading to impaired social interactions and resistance to rehabilitation.…”

Section: Indirect Effects Of Non-amygdala Regionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abnormal Fear Conditioning and Amygdala Processing in an Animal Model of Autism

Markram

Rinaldi

Mendola

et al. 2007

Neuropsychopharmacol

331

262

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A core feature of autism spectrum disorders is the impairment in social interactions. Among other brain regions, a deficit in amygdala processing has been suggested to underlie this impairment, but whether the amygdala is processing fear abnormally in autism, is yet not clear. We used the valproic acid (VPA) rat model of autism to (a) screen for autism-like symptoms in rats, (b) test for alterations in amygdala-dependent fear processing, and (c) evaluate neuronal reactivity and synaptic plasticity in the lateral amygdala by means of in vitro single-cell electrophysiological recordings. VPA-treated animals displayed several symptoms common to autism, among them impaired social interactions and increased repetitive behaviors. Furthermore, VPA-treated rats were more anxious and exhibited abnormally high and longer lasting fear memories, which were overgeneralized and harder to extinguish. On the cellular level, the amygdala was hyperreactive to electrical stimulation and displayed boosted synaptic plasticity as well as a deficit in inhibition. We show for the first time enhanced, overgeneralized and resistant conditioned fear memories in an animal model of autism. Such hyperfear could be caused by the hyperreactivity and hyperplasticity found in the lateral amygdala, which may in turn be due to a deficit in the inhibitory system of the amygdala. We hypothesize an 'aversive world' syndrome that could, even if not a primary cause of the disorder itself, underlie some core symptoms in autism, such as impairments in social interactions and resistance to rehabilitation.

show abstract

Autonomic responses of autistic children to people and objects

Cited by 256 publications

References 36 publications

Autonomic and brain responses associated with empathy deficits in autism spectrum disorder

Autonomic and brain responses associated with empathy deficits in autism spectrum disorder

A Systematic Literature Review of Emotion Regulation Measurement in Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abnormal Fear Conditioning and Amygdala Processing in an Animal Model of Autism

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About