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Spectrum: Autism Research News

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Signs & Symptoms

Autism’s core symptoms accompany a constellation of subtle signs that scientists are just beginning to unmask.

December 2018
Child in MEG with eeg cap

Autistic children may have to mute own perspective to grasp others’

by  /  6 December 2018

To understand another person’s point of view, children with autism may need to actively suppress their own.

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Siblings, a baby and a toddler, play together at home.

How pregnancy may shape a child’s autism

by  /  5 December 2018

Autism is predominantly genetic in origin, but a growing list of prenatal exposures for mother and baby may sway the odds.

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National surveys estimate U.S. autism prevalence at 1 in 40

by  /  3 December 2018

About 1 in 40 children in the United States has autism, according to a survey conducted in 2016. Roughly 30 percent of those children were not being treated for the condition at the time.

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Female doctor with mother and child in doctor's office.

Slow onset may explain late autism diagnosis in some children

by  /  3 December 2018

Some autistic children don’t show traits of the condition until age 5 or later.

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November 2018
Father and son talking on the couch.

Autistic children, parents may shape each other’s language

by  /  28 November 2018

Parents may speak to their autistic children using fewer words and less complex sentences than do parents of typical children, which in turn shapes the children’s language skills.

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Illustration shows head with closed eyes.

‘Shock therapy’ may help some autistic teens with catatonia

by  /  26 November 2018

Case reports suggest electroconvulsive therapy is effective for treating catatonia in people with autism.

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Feet of a child on a scale, weighing in at 86 pounds.

Obesity risk tracks with severity of autism traits, study suggests

by  /  22 November 2018

The latest study to show that autistic children tend to be overweight suggests that the risk is greatest for those at the severe end of the spectrum.

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Schizophrenia prevalence may be threefold higher in people with autism

by  /  21 November 2018

Autism and schizophrenia co-occur significantly more often than would be expected by chance, according to an analysis of nearly 2 million people.

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Young children with autism may show brain-fluid buildup

by  /  19 November 2018

Autistic children aged 2 to 4 have about 15 percent more fluid between their skull and their brain than their typical peers do.

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Purkinje neurons glow red in this section.

Cerebellum’s role in autism may depend on timing

by  /  12 November 2018

Two studies published in the past two months provide new clues to when and how the cerebellum contributes to autism.

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