Autism | Top 26 novel treatment findings

Is the Early Start Denver Model a game changer or just another fad? Let's find out!

Early Start Denver Model shows varied responses

The ESDM intervention led to significant improvements in cognitive scores, communication, and daily living skills, particularly in children categorized as High Responders. The study identified three subgroups based on cognitive trajectories, with some children showing nearly no cognitive delay by the end of treatment.

Study published: 2021-04-07

Could your genes hold the key to unlocking better autism treatments?

Genetic variants affect autism treatment outcomes

Individuals with non-carrier status for rare variants showed greater improvements in social skills from standard care compared to those with variants. SSGT was highlighted as potentially more beneficial for individuals with rare variants.

Study published: 2021-05-22

Unlocking Emotions: How a Fun Game is Helping Kids with Autism Read Feelings!

The charades-style mobile game improves emotion recognition in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

The emotion classifier demonstrated superior performance in recognizing emotions compared to existing platforms, supporting the hypothesis that a model trained on pediatric data can enhance emotion recognition for children with ASD. This suggests a potential for improved precision therapy at home.

Study published: 2021-08-01

Chill Out: How RSA Biofeedback is the Secret Sauce for Stress-Free Teens!

RSA biofeedback reduces stress in adolescents

The study hypothesizes that the RSA biofeedback intervention will lead to increased cardiac vagal modulation, improved behavioral and physiological parameters, and reduced stress levels in adolescents with ASD.

Study published: 2021-03-01

Can talking to a therapist really calm the storm in an autistic teen's mind?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy reduces anxiety in autistic youth.

The meta-analysis indicates that CBT for anxiety is effective in reducing anxiety symptoms in autistic individuals, with moderate certainty in parent- and clinician-reported outcomes. The overall evidence for feasibility and acceptability of the identified strategies tends to be positive, suggesting that many adaptations can be easily implemented in mental health services.

Study published: 2023-12-01

Is your love hormone working overtime? Discover how chronic oxytocin might just be your body's secret booster!

Chronic oxytocin boosts endogenous levels

Increased salivary oxytocin levels were observed 24 hours post-treatment, along with reduced DNA methylation and improved feelings of secure attachment in children receiving oxytocin compared to placebo.

Study published: 2023-06-10

Step Up Your Game: How Boosting Foot Feel Can Help Kids with Autism Find Their Balance!

Enhancing foot sensation improves balance in children with autism

The study found a significant positive correlation between cutaneous tactile sensation and balance performance, indicating that improved tactile sensation may lead to better balance scores in children with ASD.

Study published: 2022-09-09

Unlocking the Language Code: How a New Intervention is Helping Autistic Kids Speak Up!

Prefrontal Synthesis intervention improves language skills in autistic children

The test group showed a 1.7-fold improvement in receptive language scores and a 1.4-fold improvement in expressive language scores compared to the control group, indicating significant language acquisition improvements through PFS training.

Study published: 2020-10-02

Unlocking the Secrets: How a Game App Could Spot Autism Before You Even Know It!

Game-based app identifies autism indicators

The study identifies significant differences in gaze fixation and transition patterns between children with ASD and neurotypical children during gameplay. Additionally, the deep learning model shows mild predictive power in identifying ASD based on gaze indicators.

Study published: 2021-06-25

Can a love hormone be the key to calming the chaos for kids on the spectrum?

Chronic oxytocin treatment reduces stress in autistic children aged 8-12.

The treatment resulted in improved autonomic stress regulation, as evidenced by increased heart rate variability, and enhanced amygdala coupling to regions of the salience network, indicating potential benefits in social salience processing.

Study published: 2023-04-04

Sleep like a baby: How melatonin is the secret weapon for autistic kids!

Melatonin improves sleep in autistic children

86% of children experienced improvements in sleep onset, 54% in sleep duration, and 45% in night awakenings. Additionally, melatonin improved daytime behaviors in over 28% of the children.

Study published: 2023-06-20

Zap Your Senses: How a Shocking Treatment is Boosting Touch for Autistic Adults!

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation improves tactile reactivity in autistic adults.

The study aims to demonstrate that rTMS can safely reduce hyper-plasticity in the primary sensory cortex, which may lead to improved tactile reactivity and overall functioning in autistic individuals.

Study published: 2024-05-27

Unlocking Emotions: How Neurofeedback is Changing the Game for ASD!

Neurofeedback improves emotion regulation in ASD

The study found improvements in affective characteristics across both groups, with increases in resting activity in the anterior cingulate cortex and right inferior temporal gyrus. Correlations were observed between brain activation patterns during SCP differentiation and the affective improvements reported by parents, indicating a potential link between neurofeedback training and emotional regulation.

Study published: 2022-10-31

Can't sleep? You're not alone! Discover how insomnia is driving up healthcare visits for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Insomnia increases healthcare use in ASD

Children with insomnia exhibited higher rates of healthcare utilization, including increased hospitalizations and emergency room visits. Treating insomnia may lead to improvements in sleep and a reduction in behavioral symptoms associated with ASD.

Study published: 2022-12-14

Unlocking Sweet Dreams: How Melatonin is the Secret Sleep Aid for Autistic Minds!

Melatonin improves sleep in autism

Approximately two-thirds of patients with ASD reported improvement in sleep problems after melatonin treatment, indicating its effectiveness in this population.

Study published: 2021-10-30

Unlocking the Power of Touch: How Traditional Thai Massage Can Boost Social Skills in Kids with Autism!

Parental Traditional Thai Massage improves social skills in autistic children

Expected improvements in Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist scores, heart rate variability, gait, and reduced parenting stress index after the intervention.

Study published: 2021-12-24

Could lithium be the secret ingredient for a brighter future in autism development?

Lithium treatment improves neurodevelopment in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Lithium treatment showed potential in rescuing the downregulated WNT/β-catenin signaling pathway and alleviating neurodevelopmental deficits associated with MARK2 variants in both cellular and tissue models.

Study published: 2024-04-25

Unlocking the Secrets of Your Genes: How Genomics is Revolutionizing Neurodegenerative Disease Management!

Genomics-informed care improves NDD management

The implementation of a genomics-informed model resulted in significant clinical benefits, including direct changes to management for all patients with pathogenic variants, increased rates of cascade testing, family counseling, medication changes, and specialty referrals.

Study published: 2024-05-09

Can a diuretic be the key to unlocking better days for kids with autism?

Bumetanide improves autism symptoms in children

The study found that bumetanide treatment significantly reduced the severity of ASD symptoms, as evidenced by improved scores on the CARS and Clinical Global Impressions Scale (CGI) - Global Improvement (CGI-I) after 3 months. The clinical improvement was associated with a decrease in insular GABA levels in the bumetanide group.

Study published: 2020-12-19

Can heartbeats help calm the chaos? Discover how HRV biofeedback is changing the game for stress management in autism!

HRV biofeedback improves stress in autism

The study found that supervised HRVB led to a late increase in cardiac vagal modulation, with participants reporting significantly lower symptoms of stress after the home-based training period, regardless of prior training type.

Study published: 2023-06-04

Could a natural sugar be the key to unlocking better days for those with autism?

Beta-glucan improves autism symptoms

There was a significant decrease in the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) score in children receiving Nichi Glucan compared to the control group, indicating improvement in behavioral patterns. Additionally, plasma levels of alpha-synuclein were significantly higher in the Nichi Glucan group, suggesting a potential link between the supplement and neurobiological changes.

Study published: 2021-06-29

Can your diet save your mind? Discover how antioxidants might just be the key to keeping schizophrenia at bay!

Diet-derived antioxidants reduce schizophrenia risk in healthy adults

Suggestive evidence indicated that higher absolute circulating α-tocopherol levels may reduce the risk of schizophrenia, although this was not statistically significant after correction for multiple testing.

Study published: 2022-05-16

Unlocking the Power of Eye Contact: How Social Gaze Training Can Supercharge Your Brain!

Social gaze training improves brain connectivity

Following the training, boys with FXS showed normalization of functional connectivity differences compared to boys with ASD, indicating an improvement in social gaze behavior and associated brain connectivity.

Study published: 2022-06-30

Can a combo of sertraline and mirtazapine be the secret sauce for brighter days in those with autism?

Sertraline and mirtazapine improve depression symptoms in individuals with autism

The study highlights the prevalence of psychiatric medication use among individuals with ASD, with a significant portion receiving treatment for depression, although the long-term effectiveness of these treatments remains a concern.

Study published: 2022-10-22

Unlocking Emotions: How Online Training is Changing the Game for Autistic Adults!

Multi-session online training improves emotion recognition in autistic adults.

Participants showed a 14% improvement in facial emotion recognition accuracy, with some self-reported enhancements in social interactions post-training.

Study published: 2024-07-24

Unlocking Better Minds: How Tailored Mental Health Strategies are Transforming Lives for Autistic Adults!

Adapted mental health interventions improve care for autistic adults.

Most adaptations and bespoke interventions were found to be acceptable and feasible, with qualitative evidence indicating that specific adaptations (like visualization in CBT) were perceived as helpful by participants. The introduction of autism-specific training for clinicians was also seen as beneficial.

Study published: 2023-03-10