April 03, 2023
- According to new research, mothers who had COVID-19 while pregnant have an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders in their male offspring. The study used electronic health records for 18,355 births since the beginning of the pandemic and discovered a significant uptick in developmental issues among boys, not girls, in their first year of life.
- A new study has found that young children with autism are less likely to receive vision screenings than neurotypical children. This research discovered that only 36.5% of children on the spectrum had completed vision screenings at pediatric well visits versus 59.5% of children without the disorder. The authors point out that early childhood is a critical time for vision development and that children with autism have a high risk for serious eye disorders.
- Lawmakers in the Senate and House of Representatives recently introduced a bill calling for mandatory home and community-based services for older adults and people with disabilities through the Medicaid benefit. If passed, the Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Act, will eliminate waiting lists for community-based services by increasing funding for the program, providing grants to states to expand their service capacity and taking other steps to strengthen the workforce of caregivers who support people with disabilities.
- The Brain Foundation has recently released its Synchrony 2022 Conference Report, co-written by Richard Frye and Heer Nanda. The conference covered a broad range of topics, including searching for important biomarkers to help with early detection tools and working on basic science that evaluates various drug pathways and effects for treating autism symptoms and improving lives for those with the disorder.
- The Autism Research Institute is holding a webinar titled “Gestational Influences and Autism-2023.” The free event will take place on Wednesday, April 19, 2023, at 1 p.m. EDT and will be hosted by Judy Van de Water, Ph.D. of the MIND Institute. Dr. Van de Water is an expert on investigating the maternal immune system as it relates to autism spectrum disorders, with a particular emphasis on the presence of highly specific maternal autoantibodies and how those antibodies affect fetal brain proteins.
