Wilders Window

What The Manufacturer: Merck & Co., Inc List as side effects of the MMR

2009-11-13T12:33:00.000-08:00

ADVERSE REACTIONS
The following adverse reactions are listed in decreasing order of severity, without regard to causality, within each body system category and have been reported during clinical trials, with use of the marketed vaccine, or with use of monovalent or bivalent vaccine containing measles, mumps, or rubella:
Body as a Whole
Panniculitis; atypical measles; fever; syncope; headache; dizziness; malaise; irritability.
Cardiovascular System
Vasculitis.
Digestive System
Pancreatitis; diarrhea; vomiting; parotitis; nausea.
Endocrine System...
Diabetes mellitus.
Hemic and Lymphatic System
Thrombocytopenia (see WARNINGS, Thrombocytopenia); purpura; regional lymphadenopathy; leukocytosis.
Immune System
Anaphylaxis and anaphylactoid reactions have been reported as well as related phenomena such as angioneurotic edema (including peripheral or facial edema) and bronchial spasm in individuals with or without an allergic history.
Musculoskeletal System
Arthritis; arthralgia; myalgia.
Arthralgia and/or arthritis (usually transient and rarely chronic), and polyneuritis are features of infection with wild-type rubella and vary in frequency and severity with age and sex, being greatest in adult females and least in prepubertal children. This type of involvement as well as myalgia and paresthesia, have also been reported following administration of MERUVAX II.
Chronic arthritis has been associated with wild-type rubella infection and has been related to persistent virus and/or viral antigen isolated from body tissues. Only rarely have vaccine recipients developed chronic joint symptoms.
Following vaccination in children, reactions in joints are uncommon and generally of brief duration. In women, incidence rates for arthritis and arthralgia are generally higher than those seen in children (children: 0-3%; women: 12-26%)and the reactions tend to be more marked and of longer duration. Symptoms may persist for a matter of months or on rare occasions for years. In adolescent girls, the reactions appear to be intermediate in incidence between those seen in children and in adult women. Even in women older than 35 years, these reactions are generally well tolerated and rarely interfere with normal activities.
Nervous System
Encephalitis; encephalopathy; measles inclusion body encephalitis (MIBE) (see CONTRAINDICATIONS); subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE); Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS); febrile convulsions; afebrile convulsions or seizures; ataxia; polyneuritis; polyneuropathy; ocular palsies; paresthesia.
Experience from more than 80 million doses of all live measles vaccines given in the U.S. through 1975 indicates that significant central nervous system reactions such as encephalitis and encephalopathy, occurring within 30 days after vaccination, have been temporally associated with measles vaccine very rarely. In no case has it been shown that reactions were actually caused by vaccine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has pointed out that "a certain number of cases of encephalitis may be expected to occur in a large childhood population in a defined period of time even when no vaccines are administered". However, the data suggest the possibility that some of these cases may have been caused by measles vaccines. The risk of such serious neurological disorders following live measles virus vaccine administration remains far less than that for encephalitis and encephalopathy with wild-type measles (one per two thousand reported cases).
Post-marketing surveillance of the more than 200 million doses of M-M-R and M-M-R II that have been distributed worldwide over 25 years (1971 to 1996) indicates that serious adverse events such as encephalitis and encephalopathy continue to be rarely reported.
There have been reports of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) in children who did not have a history of infection with wild-type measles but did receive measles vaccine. Some of these cases may have resulted from unrecognized measles in the first year of life or possibly from the measles vaccination. Based on estimated nationwide measles vaccine distribution, the association of SSPE cases to measles vaccination is about one case per million vaccine doses distributed. This is far less than the association with infection with wild-type measles, 6-22 cases of SSPE per million cases of measles. The results of a retrospective case-controlled study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that the overall effect of measles vaccine has been to protect against SSPE by preventing measles with its inherent higher risk of SSPE.
Cases of aseptic meningitis have been reported to VAERS following measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination. Although a causal relationship between the Urabe strain of mumps vaccine and aseptic meningitis has been shown, there is no evidence to link Jeryl Lynn™ mumps vaccine to aseptic meningitis.
Respiratory System
Pneumonia, pneumonitis (see CONTRAINDICATIONS); sore throat; cough; rhinitis.
Skin
Stevens-Johnson syndrome; erythema multiforme; urticaria; rash; measles-like rash; pruritis.
Local reactions including burning/stinging at injection site; wheal and flare; redness (erythema); swelling; induration; tenderness; vesiculation at injection site.
Special Senses — Ear
Nerve deafness; otitis media.
Special Senses — Eye
Retinitis; optic neuritis; papillitis; retrobulbar neuritis; conjunctivitis.
Urogenital System
Orchitis.
Other
Death from various, and in some cases unknown, causes has been reported rarely following vaccination with measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines; however, a causal relationship has not been established in healthy individuals (see CONTRAINDICATIONS). No deaths or permanent sequelae were reported in a published post-marketing surveillance study in Finland involving 1.5 million children and adults who were vaccinated with M-M-R II during 1982 to 1993.56
Under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, health-care providers and manufacturers are required to record and report certain suspected adverse events occurring within specific time periods after vaccination. However, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has established a Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) which will accept all reports of suspected events. A VAERS report form as well as information regarding reporting requirements can be obtained by calling VAERS 1-800-822-7967.

Above Average

2008-05-05T09:51:00.000-07:00

Wilder's teacher came to our house last week for a home visit. During this visit she showed us the results of the standardized testing that Widler and his classmates underwent this year - they take the same test once at the beginning and once at the end of the school year.

At the beginning of the school year, Wilder scored well below average for his age. As you all know, we began the DAN therapy in November of last year, 2007. Upon completion of the post testing, we learned that his score has improved TWENTY SEVEN points!!! His teacher says that she has only seen an increase of 4-5 points in children before now. I am so proud to report that his results now show a score that is ABOVE AVERAGE for his age!!!!!

I could not be more proud.

immunizations...this is a tough topic!

2008-03-01T21:10:00.000-08:00

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/government-concedes-vacci_b_88323.html

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/03/01/recent-autism-studies-do-not-actually-vindicate-vaccines.aspx

The first link above tells about a monetary settlement between a family with an autistic child and a vaccine manufacturer that will pay for the lifelong care of the child. The second reports on the origin of some recent autism studies, and why they do not actually disprove a link between autism and vaccines.

No one knows for sure what causes autism. I do not claim to know with 100% certainty what exactly caused the onset of this disorder in my son or anyone else's. Like many other parents of autistic children, I do suspect very strongly that immunizations played a major role in the onset of autism in Wilder's case. My personal belief is that genetics load the gun, and environment pulls the trigger in cases of autism and many other developmental disorders.

I wish that I had first looked at the facts and made my own opinion about what was injected into Wilder's little body before he received so many shots at all of those checkups. Instead, I took someone else's opinion as a fact, and never personally asked a question or looked into possible harmful effects of any of the ingredients in those syringes. Think of it in terms of penicillin: there is no way that every child in America could get a shot of this drug without a number of them having severe reactions. Why, then, do we consider it safe to inject every child in this country with 35 uniform shots by the time they are 3 without testing any of them for allergies or sensitivities to the ingredients first? Maybe it is because most of us do not even know what the ingredients are. I never even wondered what was in them before, or in what quantity. Do you know what is?

I know that all of the pediatricians who urge us to vaccinate our children would never purposefully cause them harm. I want to be very clear about that. That being said, I challenge you to ask your child's doctor at your next check up to list all the ingredients of any one vaccine without looking. If he/she does indeed know and can list them then your next question should be about the effects of those ingredients individually on the adult human body (since the babies can't talk). Find out about how much of each ingredient is contained in the vaccine, and how much the body can process safely in a certain period of time. Then think about what a combination of all of these different elements might feel like in a 10-20 pound body. If your doctor does not know, then it's time for you to do some research of your own.

Also please consider what the actual risk is of your child contracting the disease they are being vaccinated against. For example, when there is any sign of any outbreak of polio in our area, then it might be worth the possible risks for me to vaccinate Waker...until then I'm not going to risk his health for something he will probably never come into contact with.

I am not blaming myself for Wilder having autism, and I am not necessarily trying to dissuade anyone from getting their kids immunized. I am trying to help persuade parents to seek facts, not opinions or policies, on vaccinations and draw their own conclusions from them. Please do not accept other people's evaluations as facts if you have never personally studied the unbiased building blocks of what they based their opinion upon. Do you think the (possible) benefits outweigh the risk of harm? How much risk of harm is acceptable for your child? And how is this risk measured? Which of the known possible side effects would be acceptable for your child to suffer from? It seems to me the possible problems that the manufacturers cite may not actually be side effects at all, but instead could be symptoms of the true (but not as immediately obvious) side effects.

For some strange reason it is damn near socially unacceptable to question the practice/safety of vaccinations. I wonder why this is? Why are we not allowed to discuss concerns? Shouldn't we all feel free to be thorough when it comes to our babies? I think we should feel more than free to investigate the matter; We should feel obligated.

Exciting changes!

2008-02-23T11:59:00.000-08:00

WOW it has been a while since my last post (We want to see Dub's progress occur with some consistency before I blog it as official change), so I have a ton of exciting news to share! We are really beginning to meet the real Wilder; We are pulling him out of that window a little more every day. To all of you who have given of yourselves in so many different ways for Wilder: thank you.

Wilder's school teacher reports that he is interacting much more with herself and his classmates at school. She was even lucky enough to have captured the very first of these amazing moments in a photograph (the first picture in the slideshow above) which also helps us mark the very first photo that I can ever remember Wilder actually posing for. This is the very best picture in the world to me, and one that I had previously been uncertain if we would ever be able to see.

Little Dub can now also tell me details about things that are not in his direct line of vision. For example, he can tell me the colors of all of the Teletubbies now when laying in bed at night in the dark. I had mentioned in a previous post that he has never been able to imagine things and tell me details about them before, so this is really really cool!

That also means that he is hearing and processing questions and actually giving answers. He does realize i'm talking to him without my having to say his name 50 times. We see a definite heightened sense of awareness in him.

Last night we were coming home from playing with some friends and he was singing "The wheels on the bus" song. He went through every line that we always sing and then looked to his side, picked up a kleenex box and actually made up his own words to the song. He sang "The napkin on the bus says wipe your hands, wipe your hands... etc". This is probably one of the most amazing things that he has done ever in his life because it was his own abstract creation. I can't think of any other time that he has been original instead of echolalic or repetetive.

Wilder has always had a very hard time distinguishing emotions that other people display and reacting properly to them. For example, when Wilder sees someone crying he usually laughs. He gets angry when I smile at him sometimes. A few weeks ago, however, Waker was crying and Wilder walked over to him, patted him on the back, and said "are ok baby waker?" and then reassured him that "its ok baby waker" over and over again! he had some sympathy! He saw that it pleased me (an accomplishment in itself!), and he began doing it daily to receive the same reaction.

We have had Occupational Therapy at our house twice a week since November. One of the first reasons that we sought this therapy was because we were concerned about Wilder's inability to squeeze. He could not squeeze a handful of playdoh. He had never given us real hugs, only put his arms around us and said "squeeeeeze!" without actually doing so. He could not apply enough pressure to the pedals of his bike to get it to move. I am so happy to report that now Wilder is riding his tricycle all over the place, giving us lots of hugs, and playing with playdoh every day! Thanks so much Lynsay!

Wilder's stimming behaviors have decreased significantly. Wilder has a bunch of little toy people that he used to frequently gather, put in his bed, and kindof just roll around in. He would do that for hours if we would let him. Now when he plays he consistently pretends that one is daddy, he takes them to the tub and says "jump people!" and knocks them into the water. He still takes them to bed, but now he tells them to "lay down go night night people" and lays them on the pillow beside him. I estimate that before we began this treatment he did the stimming a dozen times per day. Now I count only 4-5 times per week, and - even more importantly - the intensity of his stimming has decreased overwhelmingly.

He also used to just stare at the spinning wheels of toy cars; now he pretends that the cars are running into each other and says "crashing!". I have not seen him inappropriately spin the wheels of anything in several weeks.

this week has brought with it another HUGE accomplishment: When I ask him if he wants choice A or choice B, Wilder can now consistently choose between the two things and answer his preference. Sometimes he echos the 2 choices first, but if i sit there without saying anything at all, he will then look into my eyes and announce his choice. This is just as monumental a step as his learning to say yes was!

I have twice this much to tell, but I will finish and post the rest later this week. Time to go to bed! Thank you all so much for taking such an interest in and showing such concern for little Wilder.

Progress!

2007-12-29T09:41:00.000-08:00

Now that Dub has been on this treatment course for well over a month I see some very marked changes in him. On November 21 he reciprocated a smile with me from across the room for the first time. Usually when I smile at him for no reason he gets very angry at me. His OT mentioned later that day that she saw an improvement in his attention span. The following day as I was picking him up from school he initiated a wave to me for the first time ever. Generally he just stares at me while I wave at him. On Dec. 8th he looked at me and said "I'm dancing" which is a really big deal b/c I always have to make him say the pronoun I. He usually calls himself Wilder. (He still has not used any other pronouns such as him, her, them, or you.) He has done numerous other surprising things like actually answering questions! It shocks me every time he does it, although he is only about 50% consistent with it now. The other half of the time he just echoes the question that I asked or appears not to hear me even though I’m sitting right beside him.

At the beginning of December we went to my mom's house to play one morning with about 5 of his cousins (approx his same age). Wilder would usually continually turn his back on them to shut them out or beg me to get on the computer in order to get lost in his own little world. This time was different. He happily sat on the kitchen counter and named each one of them while he pointed them out. Wilder described aloud with perfect eye contact, much emotion and enthusiasm what each cousin was doing. At the end of his speech he was grinning from ear to ear. He proceeded to sit at a little table and play dominoes with three little cousins on the front porch after that. For those of you who know him, you can understand what a big deal this was! The desire to interact was there, and what a beautiful sight it was.

While all of this has been very exciting and encouraging, Wilder gave me the day I had been long awaiting on December 12. He took three very important steps in this single day. The first one was that as I was picking him up from school with Waker in my arms he looked at his teacher, pointed to him, and said "Waker!" with a big, proud smile. He was proud of something! It was a wonderful moment. Since then he has done more showing off of his brother in this same manner, but I have not yet seen his new emotion of pride extend to any other thing he owns or has done.

Secondly, He called my name, Mama. He has long since labeled me mama (like pointing to a picture....there's mama), but never calls out to me from another room to get my attention. This day he said from around the corner, "Mama! Come on!" It is great because now I know that he can imagine/picture me there without actually seeing me. It’s a developmental milestone that he skipped as a baby: imaginative play. For example, he is able to tell me the color of my car as long as he is looking directly at it. If we are in my living room and I ask him, he can’t tell me because he cannot imagine it. Being able to call out to me when I’m not in his sight is the first step to that!

The third thing that he did that day was that he began answering "yes" to a question!!! It is a HUGE turning point for our relationship. If ever before I asked him a yes-or-no question such as 'Wilder, do you want this?' he would simply repeat 'want this?’ Now we don't have to go in verbal circles for hours just to find out if he wants a sandwich or not! Life has gotten a lot easier since then; it has been a consistent skill since that day. It has dramatically diminished much frustration for both of us! (Thank you M.D. - what a great day!)

The biggest overall change that I notice in him since we began this treatment is simply that he is so happy now. He experiences less of a just barely there existence and more of an interactive son. It's not even like he was particularly unhappy all the time before. I simply feel that he has more awareness (and more importantly, an opinion!) about what is taking place around him. It’s almost like a fog has lifted. I'm not saying that we have experienced a miracle yet, but I am absolutely saying that our lives have definitely changed for the better in a very noticeable way, and he is making monumental progress in the areas of development that he skipped as a baby/toddler. I know in my heart that the miracle is still to come. I truly believe that the child that I grieved the loss of so intensely will come back to us completely very soon. We begin chelation therapy in a few weeks, and my level of anticipation is unprecedented.

Some results are in...

2007-12-27T19:19:00.000-08:00

When we went back to the doc for the test results we found out a LOT of news. Wilder is allergic to peanuts and eggs so in addition to restricting all of the previously mentioned foods we now avoid these two as well. Also he had no 'good' bacteria in his stomach that is necessary for many things including being a vital part to the immune system. Additionally, his thyroid is off (clearly not the medical terminology the doc used). He has a lot of yeast overgrowth (which seems to be the root of numerous problems), and his blood is too acidic. We did find out some good news...he does not have any tree or pollen allergies...

The hair test revealed that he has varying levels of 25 different toxic elements polluting his body. Among these (in no specific order) were lead, copper, arsenic, tin, aluminum, mercury, palladium, antimony, silver and barium. I thought it was very interesting that the analysis attached to these lab results discussed the effects of some of these elements. They include adverse effects on cognitive function, and elevated instances of behavioral/learning disorders such as ADD/ ADHD/ and autism. There are many neurotoxic effects. Children with a lead level of 1 ppm or above have higher incidence of hyperactivity. Children with levels above 3 ppm have been reported to have more learning problems. Wilder's lead level was 3.3. Cognitive dysfunction, anxiety, and aberrant behavior are listed as more symptoms of these toxins. This gives me great great hope for his future progress once we rid his little body of these things.

We will begin the chelation in January. I do not know every detail about the process yet, but my current understanding is that it will be in the form of a liquid that he will take for 10 consecutive days. At the end of that time his hair will be retested and our next step will be determined at that time dependent on the new levels. Some kids need many treatments over years and some kids respond to the first one.

He got his first LDA injections when we were there that day. The office staff were really awesome - they did cheerleading jumps and even got a candle from the waiting room for him to blow out in order to make him happy after the shots. Going above and beyond doesn't quite describe it.

Also this month we went to the ENT and learned that Wilder was not hearing at a normal level. Although he has never had even one ear infection, he had a ton of fluid built up back there and it was making everything sound as if he were underwater. We got tubes put into his ears yesterday - the day after Christmas. The doctor said that he will definitely be able to hear better now, which should really help boost his speech/intelligibility!! Since they were put in, i have heard him mimicking the sounds of my blinker in the car, the click of the mouse, and the sounds made by the keyboard on the computer. I don't think he ever heard them before, since he usually mimics all repetetive sounds he hears.

Here we go!

2007-12-06T10:03:00.000-08:00

Well where do I begin? Let us start by thanking each every one of you for taking the time to visit Wilder's site! Without the prayers and support of our family and friends this would be an extremely lonely journey for us. Additionally, our gratitude to my friend for caring enough to create this blog is immeasurable. To say the very least, we are so excited to have some HOPE for Wilder's future, and this is the perfect way to keep everyone informed of his progress...

One of our most important goals for this blogsite is to increase the awareness of the fact that there are treatment options for autism. Upon Wilder's official diagnosis of autism the first questions I had for the specialist were "what can we do to improve his symptoms? how does he recover from this?" The answer was heartbreaking...the doctor informed me that there was nothing to be done. It is a permanent disability, she said. He would always be "quirky" and never "normal". She followed up quickly with a smile and a pat on the back as she thoughtlessly commented "what's normal anyway? Nobody wants to be normal!" She even gave a little chuckle. I would never wish that experience on my worst enemy.

Since then we have been up to our ears in the world of autism. We have heard tell of, and then tried a lot of different things to help break through into Wilder's world with varied success. The most notable of these was changing his diet in January 07 to exclude gluten, casein, and artificial colors/flavors. The previously nonverbal child began speaking within 4 days. He started to actually look at us! in November when i first heard of a DAN doctor I did a little reading up on what exactly it was and felt a rare sense of peace wash over me. We immediately made plans to take Wilder. When I made the appointment i asked the receptionist if they truly did believe in curing these kids she quickly and with much conviction said "Oh yes! We have seen this treatment has cure THOUSANDS of kids since 1992". I cried for a very long time that day.

The doctor and staff are so unbelievably caring and understanding. The initial visit was a 2 day process. The first day Wilder was not required to go; the doc took a thorough history of myself and Josh, the pregnancy, and all of the developmental stages of Wilder's life. The next morning we took him in for a thorough physical exam, blood to be drawn, hair samples to be taken, and a stool sample kit that we administered when we got home. (The results of these tests as well as our exact course of action will be given to us at our 2nd appointment held tomorrow- Friday December 7th at 3:00). The doctor also took a drop of his blood and viewed it under a microscope which was connected to a television so that we could see it as well. For the first time we were able to catch a glimpse into the mystery of Wilder's illness and actually get some ANSWERS!

The doctor was able to tell us many things from studying the single drop of blood that day- among which were: his liver and kidneys are functioning incorrectly, he has many allergies, he has many vitamin deficiencies, and he has leaky gut syndrome. The blood was overrun with fungus when there should never be any fungus present. The doc explained that if there was that much fungus in a drop of blood we could only imagine how much was polluting his brain and the rest of his organs. I was floored. My kid is moldy! All of these things were there the whole time, but no other doctor had taken the time to look for them. No other doctor even so much as took a urine sample. For the first time things began to make some sense! Of COURSE his body and brain cannot function correctly; His little body is suffering from so many dysfunctions at once that it simply can't.

Another discovery made that day that was quite heartbreaking was the discovery of evidence (both in his history and his blood) that the brain injury he sustained -which caused the onset of his autism- was most likely from an immunization. I don't really know how to comment on that...at least not right here and now since there is no concise way to embody all i want to say on the issue of immunizations. i'll save that for another day.

We left that day with 8 supplements and vitamins that he takes 3 times per day. We have 3 prescriptions for antifungals and methyl-B-12 which we give to him every 3rd day by way of injection. They were called in to a special compounding lab that makes them free of allergens and shipped overnight on ice to us. He gets regular epsom salt baths to help his body detox, and we arranged to get cranioSachral therapy (I will write more about that later). He gets occupational therapy as well as speech therapy a total of 6 times every week. His strict diet needed to be tweaked - in addition to the things i already mentioned before, we had to also purge peanuts, cashews, oats, barley, and rye. We only use first press olive oil and grapeseed oil to cook with. He eats nothing from a can or a microwave. There can be no sugar, preservatives, nitrates, pesticides or hormones in his food. Basically, if you can't tell what it used to be, then he probably can't eat it.

We are very excited to go to our appointment tomorrow. He gets his first LDA (Low Dose Allergen) shot and we should see marked improvement with the first two that he gets. The long term benefit will be even more pronounced - he will receive these for the next 3 years. Almost equally exciting are the test results from all of the blood work, stool samples, and hair samples taken last month. The hair test will let us know which metals his brain has been storing up; after we know we are then able to begin chelation in January. He was tested for airborne allergens as well as food allergies. I can hardly wait to see the results.

As for the changes we have already made...it has been less than 20 days since we began and we have had a LOT of ups and downs in that time. I think it is a little premature to draw any conclusions from such a short amount of time! i will report as i see the already evident glimmers of change become more consistent in him.

Early Screening for Autism

2007-11-12T10:27:00.001-08:00

Found at http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

Leading experts on Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and child development will discuss new advances in the screening, diagnosis, treatment, education, and family dynamics of autism and associated disorders, at a major conference on Nov. 9-11 at Tyson's Corner, Virginia, outside Washington, D.C...
Speakers at the 11th Annual Conference of the Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders (ICDL) will unveil new screening tools for early detection, provide insights on how to read "red flags" that indicate risk factors for autism and related disorders, and report on successful intervention programs, including comprehensive treatment approaches to help children with autism learn communication skills.

More than 1,000 participants are currently registered for the conference, but spaces are still available, particularly for special pre- and post-conference workshops offered this year for parents and professionals.

The conference, titled "Critical Factors for Optimal Outcomes for Children with Autism and Special Needs," will include panel discussions on a wide range of issues related to autism and related disorders and will feature researchers and clinicians in the areas of neuroscience, pediatric medicine, developmental psychology, mental health, communication and language development. Plenary panels include:

- Improving Educational Outcomes

- Looking Inside the Brain and Mind as Autism Develops: Why Some Children Learn to Develop Creativity, Empathy and Abstract Thinking

- Earliest Indicators of ASD: The Do's and Don'ts of Early Intervention

- New Understanding and Treatment of ADHD, OCD, Anxiety and Behavior Problems in Children with ASD

- The Stigma of Diagnosis

Speakers will include internationally renowned experts, including child psychiatrist Stanley Greenspan, pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton, and educator Howard Gardner, among others.

"Hearing these international experts from different fields speak together in a panel about autism and special needs will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," said Serena Wieder, clinical psychologist and associate chair of ICDL. "They will share their experiences in improving educational outcomes for children with special needs and on the benefits of working with an interdisciplinary team to better understand this complex syndrome."

The conference takes place amid growing concern about the increase in autism and related disorders in recent years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now estimates that 1 in 150 children in the United States have autism, a much higher rate than previously reported. Nearly 17 percent of U.S. children are diagnosed with developmental challenges that require early identification and preventive interventions, yet fewer than half are identified as having a problem before starting school. A new framework developed by the CDC and ICDL is aimed at identifying children at risk and facilitating early intervention and treatment, and will be presented at the conference.

As in past years, ICDL will offer pre-conference workshops on Thursday, Nov. 8, along with several new post-conference workshops designed to let participants delve more deeply into a range of topics raised during the conference, in areas including research, communication and language, sensory processing and regulation, parent interventions , and infant and early childhood mental health.

ICDL is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the prevention, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of emotional and developmental disorders in infancy and childhood by promoting dialogue and integration knowledge form different disciplines.

http://www.icdl.com

Latest News From www.medicalnewstoday.com

2007-11-04T18:49:00.000-08:00

Two new clinical reports from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) will help pediatricians recognize autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) earlier and guide families to effective interventions, which will ultimately improve the lives of children with ASDs and their families...

The first clinical report, "Identification and Evaluation of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders," provides detailed information on signs and symptoms so pediatricians can recognize and assess ASDs in their patients. Language delays usually prompt parents to raise concerns to their child's pediatrician usually around 18 months of age. However, there are earlier subtle signs that if detected could lead to earlier diagnosis. These include:

-- not turning when the parent says the baby's name;

-- not turning to look when the parent points says, "Look at…" and not pointing themselves to show parents an interesting object or event;

-- lack of back and forth babbling;

-- smiling late; and

-- failure to make eye contact with people.

Most children, at some time during early development, form attachments with a stuffed animal, special pillow or blanket. Children with ASDs may prefer hard items (ballpoint pens, flashlight, keys, action figures, etc.). They may insist on holding the object at all times.

The report advises pediatricians to be cognizant of signs of ASD, as well as other developmental concerns, at every well-child visit by simply asking the parents if they or their child's other caregivers have any concerns about their child's development or behavior. If concerns are present that may relate to ASD, the clinician is advised to use a standardized screening tool. The report also introduces universal screening, which means pediatricians conduct formal ASD screening on all children at 18 and 24 months regardless of whether there are any concerns.

"Red Flags" that are absolute indications for immediate evaluation include:

-- no babbling or pointing or other gesture by 12 months;

-- no single words by 16 months;

-- no two-word spontaneous phrases by 24 months; and

-- loss of language or social skills at any age.

Early intervention can make a huge difference in the child's prognosis. "Autism doesn't go away, but therapy can help the child cope in regular environments," said Chris Plauche Johnson, MD, MEd, FAAP, and co-author of the reports. "It helps children want to learn and communicate."
Educational strategies and associated therapies, which are the cornerstones of treatment for ASDs, are reviewed in the second AAP clinical report, "Management of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders." Early intervention is crucial for effective treatment. The report strongly advises intervention as soon as an ASD diagnosis is seriously considered rather than deferring until a definitive diagnosis is made. The child should be actively engaged in intensive intervention at least 25 hours per week, 12 months per year with a low student-to-teacher ratio allowing for sufficient one-on-one time. Parents should also be included.

Pediatricians who treat children with ASDs should recognize that many of their patients will use nonstandard therapies. The report says it's important for pediatricians to become knowledgeable about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies, ask families about current and past CAM use, and provide balanced information and advice about treatment options, including identifying risks or potential harmful effects. They should avoid becoming defensive or dismissing CAM in ways that convey a lack of sensitivity or concern, but they should also help families to understand how to evaluate scientific evidence and recognize unsubstantiated treatments.

"Many parents are interested in CAM treatments such as various vitamin and mineral supplements, chelation therapy, and diet restrictions. It's important for pediatricians to maintain open communication and continue to work with these families even if there is disagreement about treatment choices," said co-author of the reports Scott M. Myers, MD, FAAP. "At the same time, it's also important to critically evaluate the scientific evidence of effectiveness and risk of harm and convey this information to the families, just as one should for treatment with medication and for non-medical interventions."

Although use of the gluten-free/casein-free diet for children with ASDs is popular, there is little evidence to support or refute this intervention. More studies are in progress, and it is anticipated that these studies will provide substantially more useful information regarding the efficacy of the gluten-free/casein-free diet.

Tantrums, aggressive behaviors, and self-injury are common among children with ASDs, and medical factors may cause or exacerbate these behaviors. Behavior management strategies are often the most effective treatment for challenging behaviors. In some children, medications are effective in addition to the behavioral strategies. The report addresses the medical issues that some children with ASDs encounter such as seizures, gastrointestinal problems, and sleep disturbance, and provides guidance for medication management.

Both reports will be available on http://www.aap.org and will also be part of the new AAP practical resource for pediatricians "AUTISM: Caring for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Resource Toolkit for Clinicians," which includes screening and surveillance tools, guideline summary charts, management checklists, developmental checklists, developmental growth charts, early intervention referral forms and tools, sample letters to insurance companies and family handouts.

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