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“Profound” Autism

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On Tuesday, the journal Lancet published a 2+ year long endeavor around understanding the heterogeneity of autism not just in features but in access to services for individuals and families across the world. They called for a stepped care to help individualize and prioritize needs in different individuals based on their needs, not their diagnosis. They also called for the label of “profound autism” which describes individuals with very different outcomes compared to those who have a higher verbal and cognitive ability. Recognizing everyone needs supports and help, the “profound autism” label needs different supports, like different employment situations and different living accommodations. Thankfully, to authors, Dr. Catherine Lord from UCLA and Alison Singer from ASF explain the article and the impact they hope it makes on the field.

The article is open access but you have to register to download a copy, here: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)01541-5/fulltext

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You asked, we listened: what is the link between ASD and ADHD?

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This week’s ASF podcast topic comes from the listeners: what is the link between ASD and ADHD? Do parents diagnosed with ADHD have a greater chance of having a child with ASD? What are the similarities and differences? And what do families need to know? We interviewed Dr. Meghan Miller from the University of California Davis, who is one of the most prolific academics (and trusted psychologist to families) in this area. Want to read some of her research? Here you go:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6439602/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7891894/

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“ASADHD” – where does ASD and ADHD join together, and go their separate ways?

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One the surface, symptoms of ADHD and ASD may seem very similar.  However, they come from very different places.  The genetic and behavioral makeup may be on the same spectrum across the two disorders, but they are actually farther apart than you might think.  Dr. Meghan Miller from UC Davis MIND Institute who studies both ADHD and ASD and people with ADHD and ASD explains what those differences and similarities are, how to make the right diagnosis, and what’s on the horizon for treatments for ADHD in people with ASD.

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31974800

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30535156

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30658861

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The 2018 Year in Review: A spectrum within a spectrum

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There were a number of exciting advances in scientific understanding autism in 2018.  These include things that we know to be true, and know to be not true.  Researchers made progress in identifying subgroups of ASD, defining biological markers, and developing  interventions. There were also research that demonstrates that while autism is a spectrum itself, it is also part of a bigger spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders from anxiety to ADHD to OCD.  Therefore, the approaches to these other conditions may be applicable to ASD. In addition, there may be more similarities than differences in the biological features of these conditions.

This is just a sampling of the exciting research presented on this year’s Year in Review.  You can also read the full summary, complete with references, HERE.