Autism and environment

Upper limb (UL) motor dysfunctions impact residual movement in hands/shoulders and limit participation in play, sports, and leisure activities. Clinical and laboratory assessments of UL movement can be time-intensive, subjective, and/or require specialized equipment and may not optimally capture a child's motor abilities. The restrictions to in-person research experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic have inspired investigators to design inclusive at-home studies with child participants and their families. Relying on the ubiquity of mobile devices, mobile health (mHealth) applications offer solutions for various clinical and research problems...

BACKGROUND: Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have inhibitory control deficits. The combination of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and inhibitory control training produces good transfer effects and improves neuroplasticity. However, no studies have explored whether applying tDCS over the dlPFC improves inhibitory control and produces transfer effects in children with ASD. OBJECTIVE: To explore whether multisession tDCS could enhance inhibitory control training (response inhibition), near-transfer (interference control) and far-transfer effects (sustained attention; stability of attention) in children with ASD and the generalizability of training effects in daily life and the classroom, as reflected by behavioral performance and neural activity measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)...

BACKGROUND: Early-life exposure to phthalates alters behaviors in animals. However, epidemiological evidence on childhood phthalate exposure and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) behaviors is limited. METHODS: This study included 243 children from the ReCHARGE (Revisiting Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and Environment) study, who were previously classified as having autism spectrum disorder (ASD), developmental delay, other early concerns, and typical development in the CHARGE case-control study...

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BACKGROUND: Children with autism exhibit a higher general and dental anxiety, due to altered sensory sensibilities. AIM: This current systematic review aims to evaluate the effectiveness of Sensory adapted dental environment (SADE) over regular dental environment (RDE) on behavioral, physiological stress and overt anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Prospero registered (CRD42024508336). PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus databases are searched from years January 1, 1980-January 1, 2024 using pre-defined search strategy...

BACKGROUND: There is a dearth of feasibility assessments regarding using large language models (LLMs) for responding to inquiries from autistic patients within a Chinese-language context. Despite Chinese being one of the most widely spoken languages globally, the predominant research focus on applying these models in the medical field has been on English-speaking populations. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to assess the effectiveness of LLM chatbots, specifically ChatGPT-4 (OpenAI) and ERNIE Bot (version 2...

Parents of autistic children experience high levels of parental stress and low quality of life related to the demanding child caring burden they experience. Parent education and training programs are acknowledged to improve parental well-being and reduce parenting stress. In the framework of the Erasmus+ Integrative Autism Parents Training Project (IPAT), we developed the IPAT Training Module based on parents' expressed needs, in order to improve parental quality of life (QoL) and decrease their perceived stress...

One of the greatest COVID-19-related challenges for children and their families was managing distance learning due to school closures. We also know from previous research that families with a child with a neurodevelopmental disorder such as ADHD or ASD were struggling more than others but also experienced some positive effects. However, few qualitative studies have been conducted. The present study therefore aimed to investigate parental experiences of the negative and positive effects of distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic in a large sample of families with an adolescent with ADHD and/or ASD and a matched comparison group ( n = 682)...

BACKGROUND: Perceptual visual impairment leads to impaired functional vision in children with cerebral visual impairment. Yoked prisms have been used in behavioral vision therapy for children with autism (dysfunctional dorsal visual processing pathway) and in neurorehabilitation to treat visual neglect, hemianopia, and abnormal egocentric localization. In particular, they are employed for treating perceptual visual problems. PURPOSE: To share our experience in implementing yoked prisms and their impact on the rehabilitation of children with cerebral visual impairment-related perceptual vision disorders...

Rodents, along with numerous other mammals, heavily depend on olfactory cues to navigate their social interactions. Processing of olfactory sensory inputs is mediated by conserved brain circuits that ultimately trigger social behaviors, such as social interactions and parental care. Although innate, parenting is influenced by internal states, social experience, genetics, and the environment, and any significant disruption of these factors can impact the social circuits. Here, we review the molecular mechanisms and social circuits from the olfactory epithelium to central processing that initiate parental behaviors and their dysregulations that may contribute to the social impairments in mouse models of autism spectrum disorders (ASD)...

BACKGROUND: During development, children face a number of demands and cognitive, behavioral, and social challenges necessary for growth. Cognitive skills make individuals competent and allow them to interact with their environment. OBJECTIVE: To identify the cognitive skills that promote better social insertion in children with autism spectrum disorder within 12 months. DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective cohort study. METHODS: In this study, 21 children aged 3-12 years were assessed, and their mothers were interviewed...

Converging evidence implicates disrupted brain connectivity in autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however, the mechanisms linking altered connectivity early in development to the emergence of ASD symptomatology remain poorly understood. Here we examined whether atypicalities in the Salience Network - an early-emerging neural network involved in orienting attention to the most salient aspects of one's internal and external environment - may predict the development of ASD symptoms such as reduced social attention and atypical sensory processing...

BACKGROUND: Patients with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) experience higher rates of perioperative anxiety and are likely to receive premedication. Little is known about nonpharmaceutical interventions which may decrease anxiety. This study aims to evaluate the use of an adaptive sensory environment (ASE) to reduce ASD patient anxiety during the perioperative process. METHODS: Our feasibility study (ClinicalTrials.govNCT04994613) enrolled 60 patients in two parallel groups randomized to a control (no ASE) or intervention group (ASE)...

BACKGROUND: Cultural-based literature focusing on Asian autistic immigrants living in Western countries is very limited. AIMS: The present study is a quality improvement exercise aiming to fill the gap by investigating the employment needs of and barriers for Chinese autistic youth and young adults in Ontario, Canada. METHODS & PROCEDURES: 71 individuals diagnosed with autism and 24 diagnosed with other mental illnesses, aged 12-29, participated in an online survey regarding their work readiness, work skills, interests, health and cultural concerns...

INTRODUCTION: Around 16% of world's population lives with visible and invisible disabilities. People with disabilities' participation may be limited because of the environmental obstacles. Moreover, historic heritage places were built before the development of accessibility standards and the rights of people living with disabilities and the majority were not designed to be accessible. Access to historic heritage places is important for carrying out the activities in place but also to create and reinforce identity...

BACKGROUND: Given the anticipated increase in ambient temperature due to climate change, the hazardous effects of heat on health have been extensively studied; however, its impact on people with intellectual disability, autism, and mental illness is largely unknown. We aimed to estimate the association between heat and hospitalisation through the emergency department (ED) among people with these mental disorders. METHODS: In this nationwide study, we used data from the National Health Insurance Database (NHID) of the National Health Insurance Service, the single universal insurer in South Korea, the claims data for which is based on the ICD-10...

IMPORTANCE: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder more prevalent in males than in females. The cause of ASD is largely genetic, but the association of genetics with the skewed sex ratio is not yet understood. To our knowledge, no large population-based study has provided estimates of heritability by sex. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the sex-specific heritability of ASD. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This was a population-based, retrospective analysis using national health registers of nontwin siblings and cousins from Sweden born between January 1, 1985, and December 31, 1998, with follow-up to 19 years of age...

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is often associated with social communication impairments and specific sound processing deficits, for example problems in following speech in noisy environments. To investigate underlying neuronal processing defects located in the auditory neocortex (AC), we performed two-photon Ca2+ imaging in FMR1 ( Fragile X Messenger Ribonucleoprotein 1 ) knockout (KO) mice, a model for Fragile-X-Syndrome (FXS), the most common cause of hereditary ASD in humans. For primary AC (A1) and the anterior auditory field (AAF), topographic frequency representation was less ordered compared to control animals...

4-methylbenzylidene camphor (4-MBC) and micro/nanoplastics (MNPs) are common in personal care and cosmetic products (PCCPs) and consumer goods; however, they have become pervasive environmental contaminants. MNPs serve as carriers of 4-MBC in both PCCPs and the environment. Our previous study demonstrated that 4-MBC induces estrogenic effects in zebrafish larvae. However, knowledge gaps remain regarding the sex- and tissue-specific accumulation and potential toxicities of chronic coexposure to 4-MBC and MNPs...

Background  The effectiveness of interventions based on applied behavior analysis (ABA) for individuals with autism has been well documented in numerous meta-analyses, systematic reviews, and cost-benefit analyses. However, an observed 'efficacy-effectiveness gap' exists, which can be attributed to various factors. This third replication study, therefore, has significant implications for the field. By assessing the impact of ABA treatment, specifically involving discrete trial training and mass trials, within a naturalistic environment, the study provides valuable insights that can inform and improve the delivery of ABA treatments in real-world settings...