Developmental profiles in preschool children with autism spectrum disorders referred for intervention

Fernell, Elisabeth; Hedvall, Åsa; Norrelgen, Fritjof; Eriksson, Mats; Höglund-Carlsson, Lotta; Barnevik-Olsson, Martina; Svensson, Leif; Holm, Annette; Westerlund, Joakim; Gillberg, Christopher

doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2010.02.003

Cited by 83 publications

(78 citation statements)

References 28 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…All of these results suggest a sexually dimorphic response in our CTM-exposed rodent model. Interestingly, earlier studies have also reported that boys are approximately fivefold more likely to exhibit ASDs than girls (47). In this study, CTM-induced behavioral deficits were observed in male animals only, and the subsequent anatomical experiment was therefore carried out on male rats.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

Behavioral training reverses global cortical network dysfunction induced by perinatal antidepressant exposure

Zhou

Darling

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abnormal cortical circuitry and function as well as distortions in the modulatory neurological processes controlling cortical plasticity have been argued to underlie the origin of autism. Here, we chemically distorted those processes using an antidepressant drugexposure model to generate developmental neurological distortions like those characteristics expressed in autism, and then intensively trained altered young rodents to evaluate the potential for neuroplasticity-driven renormalization. We found that young rats that were injected s.c. with the antidepressant citalopram from postnatal d 1-10 displayed impaired neuronal repetition-rate following capacity in the primary auditory cortex (A1). With a focus on recovering grossly degraded auditory system processing in this model, we showed that targeted temporal processing deficits induced by early-life antidepressant exposure within the A1 were almost completely reversed through implementation of a simple behavioral training strategy (i.e., a modified go/no-go repetition-rate discrimination task). Degraded parvalbumin inhibitory GABAergic neurons and the fast inhibitory actions that they control were also renormalized by training. Importantly, antidepressant-induced degradation of serotonergic and dopaminergic neuromodulatory systems regulating cortical neuroplasticity was sharply reversed. These findings bear important implications for neuroplasticitybased therapeutics in autistic patients.autism | behavioral training | cortical network | antidepressant exposure | recovery of function R ecently, extensive efforts have been made to understand better the etiology of pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs), such as autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), with an ultimate goal of identifying preventive and more effective treatment strategies. At present, a general consensus from both human and animal studies is that a variety of genetic and environmental factors play an integrated role in the establishment of neurobehavioral abnormalities marking these disorders (1-5). Given the complexity of its origins and of the expressions of neurological abnormalities in ASD, it has been generally concluded that no single drug or therapy can be expected to provide effective treatment for the core and associated symptoms of ASDs (6-9).Interestingly, early behavioral intervention has been associated with significant improvements in intelligence quotient, language acquisition, and adaptive behavior (10). Furthermore, positive outcomes of individuals with an unequivocal history of moderate-severe ASD (11) provide hope that the strong behavioral deficits expressed in the disorder might, on some corrective neurobehavioral path, be reversible. What is that path? A critical question to answer is whether and to what extent the cortical network dysfunction and the subcortical machinery that regulates it, repeatedly described as distorted in humans with autism and in animal models of autism (12-15), can be reversed, either through drug treatment or via behavioral approaches.Cortical circuit mi...

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

Behavioral training reverses global cortical network dysfunction induced by perinatal antidepressant exposure

Zhou

Darling

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Children diagnosed with ASD are a diverse group with diverging needs, even between children with this diagnosis (27). However, the most common features of ASD, like difficulties interpreting verbal and non-verbal communication as well as tremendous dependence on routine, make a child with ASD more prone to extreme anxiety or of exhibiting challenging behaviors in an unknown or unfamiliar situation (28).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the most common features of ASD, like difficulties interpreting verbal and non-verbal communication as well as tremendous dependence on routine, make a child with ASD more prone to extreme anxiety or of exhibiting challenging behaviors in an unknown or unfamiliar situation (28). The communication difficulties in children with ASD can often differ from the expected communication needs of children with other intellectual disabilities like Down syndrome; this makes it especially important that care for children with ASD is administered in a way suitable for their specific needs (19,27). To this end, the abnormal reactions to sensory stimuli's in children with ASD can make an act of kindness like a gentle touch, which many other children experience as enjoyable, feel extremely uncomfortable or even trigger challenging behaviors from the child (4,27).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The communication difficulties in children with ASD can often differ from the expected communication needs of children with other intellectual disabilities like Down syndrome; this makes it especially important that care for children with ASD is administered in a way suitable for their specific needs (19,27). To this end, the abnormal reactions to sensory stimuli's in children with ASD can make an act of kindness like a gentle touch, which many other children experience as enjoyable, feel extremely uncomfortable or even trigger challenging behaviors from the child (4,27). This makes it difficult for the staff to provide good care in the absence of knowledge about the disorder and its precise manifestation in a specific child (16).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Perioperative and Anesthesia Guidelines for Children with Autism: A Nationwide Survey from Sweden

Berglund

Huus

Enskär

et al. 2016

J Dev Behav Pediatr

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Perioperative and anesthesia guidelines for children with autism: A nationwide survey from Sweden. Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 37(6) The overall aim of this study was to describe the current set of guidelines for the preparation and care for children with Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the perioperative setting across Sweden and explore the content of these guidelines in detail. Method: An online questionnaire was distributed to the chairpersons of all anesthesia departments (n= 68) and pediatric departments (n= 38) throughout Sweden. Follow-up phone calls were made to those departments that did not return the questionnaire. The presence of guidelines was analyzed via descriptive statistics. These guidelines and comments on routines used in these departments were analyzed inspired by conventional content analysis. Results: Seven out of the 68 anesthesia departments and none out of the 38 pediatric departments across Sweden have guidelines for preparing and/or administering care to children with ASD within the perioperative setting. From the guidelines and routines used, 3 categories emerge: "lacking the necessary conditions," "no extra considerations needed" and "care with specific consideration for children with ASD." These 3 categories span a continuum in the care. In the first category, the anesthesia induction could result in the child with ASD being physically restrained. In the last category, the entire encounter with the health care service would be adapted to the specific needs of the child. Conclusion: There is a lack of evidence-based guidelines specifically designed to meet the needs of children with ASD in the preoperative period in Sweden. Further research is needed to understand if children with ASD would benefit from evidence-based guidelines. Journal of

show abstract

“…Parental concern has yielded higher specificity when compared to standardized tests for social communication concerns for ASD (Hess & Landa, 2012) Giacomo & Fombonne, 1998;Wetherby et al, 2004). Research has consistently reported variability in nonverbal and verbal communication skills among older children with ASD (Charman, 2003;Fernell et al, 2010;Matson, Kozlowski, & Matson, 2012;Wetherby et al 2004), leading to numerous studies investigating early predictors of language development and future outcomes. It has been demonstrated that imitation (Stone & Yoder, 2001;, play skills (McCune, 1995;Ungerer & Sigman, 1984), joint attention (Dawson et al, 2004;Mundy, Sigman, & Kasari, 1990;Sigman et al, 1999), and cognitive ability (Lord & Schopler, 1989;Sigman et al, 1999) are predictive of future communication outcomes.…”

Section: Limitations and Clinical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Evaluation of Measures Associated with the Differential Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder Within a University-Based Clinic Sample

Torigoe-Lai¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Developmental profiles in preschool children with autism spectrum disorders referred for intervention

Cited by 83 publications

References 28 publications

Behavioral training reverses global cortical network dysfunction induced by perinatal antidepressant exposure

Behavioral training reverses global cortical network dysfunction induced by perinatal antidepressant exposure

Perioperative and Anesthesia Guidelines for Children with Autism: A Nationwide Survey from Sweden

An Evaluation of Measures Associated with the Differential Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder Within a University-Based Clinic Sample

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About