Ethan Bunkelmann, 6, who has autism, with his mother Ruthie, right, has a moment of frustration while playing Wii. Because he wanders, Ethan wears a wristband with a personal radio frequency located inside. March 28, 2011 Gary Coronado / The Palm Beach Post / ZUMAPRESS
+Autism | May 9, 2011

South Korean Study Suggests Rate of Autism May Be Underestimated

By Alice Park

In the first large-scale study of its kind, U.S. and South Korean researchers report that the rate of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may be significantly higher than previously thought, affecting as many as 1 in 38 children. The findings suggest that many youngsters may be going undiagnosed and untreated for the developmental disorder.

+Autism | April 28, 2011

Detecting Autism Early With a 5-Minute Questionnaire

By Alice Park
Trisha G.

It’s generally better to detect a disease sooner rather than later, but with some slowly progressing conditions, it’s not always possible to pick out the first signs of trouble.

+Autism | November 3, 2010

Study: Some Autistic Brains Really Are Wired Differently

By Maia Szalavitz
307_Brain

Too many tight connections in frontal-lobe circuits and too few long-distance links between the frontal lobe and the rest of the brain may cause some of the language,  social problems and repetitive behavior seen in autism spectrum disorders, according to a new study published in Science Translational Medicine.

+Parenting | May 19, 2010

Parents of autistic children not more likely to break up

By Tiffany O'Callaghan

Though the oft-quoted statistic — that strain and stress contributes to an 80% divorce rate among parents of autistic children — has long had its critics, new research presented today at the International Meeting for Autism Research in Philadelphia more definitively undermines that figure with findings based on families of more than 78,000 children. The [...]

+Autism | March 16, 2010

Toward a more effective genetic test for autism

By Tiffany O'Callaghan

Expecting parents who have one child or other family members with an autism spectrum disorder often request genetic testing to determine their unborn child’s risk for autism. Currently, however, the most frequently used genetic tests—karyotyping, which examines a sample of cells for abnormalities and testing for Fragile X syndrome, a condition that can cause developmental [...]