News on Learning and Developmental Disorders

Understanding Autism Symptoms

2010-03-15T23:29:47Z

As autism is a disorder of the nerves and their development, resulting in some form of impairment in the social and communicative skills of the individual, the autism symptoms of each child will be different. Autism symptoms are normally displayed by children in their first couple of years of growth and development, and require a strong observation to pick up on. However, with patience and good observation parents are able to detect the first signs and symptoms of autism.<br><br>P...

U.S. court rules again against vaccine-autism claims

2010-03-15T09:45:26Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vaccines that contain a mercury-based preservative called thimerosal cannot cause autism on their own, a special U.S. court ruled on Friday, dealing one more blow to parents seeking to blame vaccines for their children's illness.</p><p>The special US court Friday ruled against the parents of an autistic child, rejecting their claim of a connection between autism and a triple vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) their son was given.</p><p>In a similar ruling a year ago against three other families, the United States Court of Federal Claims said th...

Court says thimerosal did not cause autism

2010-03-12T18:30:13Z

<div id="subtitle">Special court rejects claims that vaccines with mercury preservative caused autism</div><div><p>The vaccine additive thimerosal is not to blame for autism, a special federal court ruled Friday in a long-running battle by parents convinced there is a connection.</p><p>While expressing sympathy for the parents involved in the emotionally charged cases, the court concluded they had failed to show a connection between the mercury-containing pres...

Self-Advocacy For Teens

2010-03-11T11:29:39Z

Students with special needs, including ADHD, learning disabilities and autism spectrum disorders, often need people to advocate for them in order to get appropriate supports from schools and practitioners. Most of that job goes to parents and grandparents during early and middle childhood. When these students hit the teen years, however, they need to begin learning how to advocate for themselves. With high school graduation just a few short years away, it's time to start thinking about how th...

1 in 4 parents buys unproven vaccine-autism link

2010-03-01T03:30:12Z

<div id="subtitle">1 in 4 parents believes unproven vaccine-autism link, but most do what doctor says is best</div><div><p>One in four U.S. parents believes some vaccines cause autism in healthy children, but even many of those worried about vaccine risks think their children should be vaccinated.</p><p>Most parents continue to follow the advice of their children's doctors, according to a study based on...

Friend: NY mom had obsessed over dead son's autism

2010-02-25T18:15:54Z

<div><p>Gigi Jordan quit a high-powered job as a pharmaceutical company executive and abandoned her social life to devote all her time to her severely autistic son.</p><p>For most of his tortured life, Jude Michael Mirra repeatedly banged his head on the floor, screaming and unable to speak, writhing in pain. His mother, trained as a nurse, went to exhaustive lengths to help the 8-year-old, desperate for a cure.</p&...

Manhattan Hotel Death

2010-02-25T12:32:27Z

FILE - This Feb. 5, 2010 file photo shows the entrance to the Peninsula Hotel in New York where severely autistic 8-year-old Jude Michael Mirra was found dead, prosecutors say at the hands of his mother. After years of struggling with his autism and her inability to help him, Jude’s mother Gigi Jordan gave up. To those who knew ...

Verdict due in Google defamation case in Italy

2010-02-23T15:17:18Z

<div><p>MILAN (Reuters) - Verdicts were expected on Wednesday on Google executives charged over a bullying video posted on the company's Italian website, in a case that could set a precedent for Internet content responsibility.</p><p>The ruling comes as Italy's government seeks to impose restrictions on hate page...

Italy targets Facebook site attacking Down's kids

2010-02-23T05:45:29Z

<div><p>ROME (Reuters) - An Italian Facebook group proposing that children with Down's syndrome be used for target practice has been shut down and Italy's equality minister threatened the "thousands of idiots" involved with legal action on Tuesday.</p><p>The page, which showed a photo of a baby with Down's wi...

Outrage in Italy over anti-Down Syndrome website

2010-02-21T18:15:35Z

<div><p>Politicians and Internet activists in Italy have denounced a page on the social networking site Facebook that calls for children with Down Syndrome to be used for target practice.</p><p>Police were trying to track down who set up the page, which features a photo of a Down Syndrome baby with the word "idiot" superimposed on it, and by late Sunday had attracted nearly...

Proposed autism diagnosis changes anger "Aspies"

2010-02-22T09:04:20Z

<div id="subtitle">'Aspies' cling to Asperger's as an elite diagnosis and balk at proposal to lump it with autism</div><div><p>In the autism world, "Aspies" are sometimes seen as the elites, the ones who are socially awkward, yet academically gifted and who embrace their quirkiness.</p><p>Now, many Aspies, a nickname for people with Asperger's syndrome, are upset over a proposal they see as an attack on their ide...

"Love" hormone may help autism symptoms: study

2010-02-22T09:23:57Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A hormone thought to encourage bonding between mothers and their babies may foster social behavior in some adults with autism, French researchers said on Monday.</p><p>They found patients who inhaled the hormone oxytocin paid more attention to expressions when looking at pictures of faces and were more likely to understand social cues in a game ...

Extremely premature babies show higher autism risk

2010-02-22T10:05:15Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children born extremely preterm may face a much higher-than-average risk of developing autism later in childhood, a new study suggests.</p><p>Researchers found that of 219 children born before the 26th week of pregnancy, 8 percent met the criteria for an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at age 11. That compared with none of 153 classmates who...

Eliminating Aspergers

2010-02-11T08:00:45Z

In this photo taken on Feb. 10, 2010, Keith and Kelli Gibson of Battle Creek, Mich., pose for a photo in their home with their sons, front left, Kolten, 6, and Caiden, 7 and in the back, Keifer, 9, left, and Connor, 11. All four boys have different forms of autism. Their mother argues that a revision to lump together in a single "autism s...

Changes proposed in how psychiatrists diagnose

2010-02-22T10:25:55Z

<div id="subtitle">Psychiatrists propose changes in how doctors diagnose and name mental disorders</div><div><p>Don't say "mental retardation" — the new term is "intellectual disability." No more diagnoses of Asperger's syndrome — call it a mild version of autism instead. And while "behavioral addictions" will be new to doctors' dictionaries, "Internet addiction" didn't make the cut.</p><p>The CHICAGO (Reuters) - Being an older mother significantly increases the risk of having a child with autism, but being an older father only increases the risk when the mother is under the age of 30, U.S. researchers said on Monday.</p><p>They found that a 40-year-old w...

Autism risks detailed in children of older mothers

2010-02-22T10:48:44Z

<div><p>A woman's chance of having a child with autism increase substantially as she ages, but the risk may be less for older dads than previously suggested, a new study analyzing more than 5 million births found.</p><p>"Although fathers' age can contribute risk, the risk is overwhelmed by maternal age," said University of California at Davis researc...

Disability Advocates 'Shocked' at Their Levels of Toxic Chemical Exposure

2010-02-22T11:06:35Z

<div id="subtitle">New study examines possible links between disability and toxicity</div><div><p>A new study examining possible links between exposure to chemicals used in everyday products and learning and developmental issues strikes a personal chord with leading advocates for the disabled.</p><p>Could the autism, cerebral palsy, or other learning and developmental issues these individuals and their families f...

Girls with ADHD show other mental health risks

2010-02-22T12:19:47Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Girls with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder are more likely than their peers to develop depression, anxiety, eating disorders or other psychiatric problems by the time they reach adulthood, a new study suggests.</p><p>The study, reported in the