Harvard Review of Psychiatry: doi: 10.1097/HRP.0000000000000031 Reviews Curtin, Carol MSW; Jojic, Mirjana MD; Bandini, Linda G. PhD, RD From the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center (Charlestown, MA) (Ms. Curtin and Dr. Bandini) and Department of Psychiatry (Worcester, MA) (Dr. Jojic), University of Massachusetts Medical School. Original manuscript received 15 February 2013, accepted for publication subject to revision 23 April 2013; revised manuscript received 20 May 2013. Correspondence: Carol Curtin, MSW, University of Massachusetts Medical SchoolE.K. Shriver Center, 465 Medford St., Suite 500, Charlestown, MA 02129. Email: carol.curtin@umassmed.edu Research suggests that the prevalence of obesity in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is at least as high as that seen in typically developing children. Many of the risk factors for children with ASD are likely the same as for typically developing children, especially within the context of todays obesogenic environment. The particular needs and challenges that this population faces, however, may render them more susceptible to the adverse effects of typical risk factors, and they may also be vulnerable to additional risk factors not shared by children in the general population, including psychopharmacological treatment, genetics, disordered sleep, atypical eating patterns, and challenges for engaging in sufficient physical activity. For individuals with ASD, … Continue reading →

JACKSON, MS (WDAM) - This is a news release from the University of Mississippi Medical Center Division of Public Affairs A team of Mississippi and California researchers have managed to prove something scientists have hoped to be true about the brain. It can be rewired. The research team's findings, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), could one day translate into an effective treatment for patients with autism spectrum disorders, said the report's co-author Dr. Rick Lin, professor of neurobiology and anatomical sciences at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. The findings, for now, are limited to the study's test subjects rats. But the results have proven that these animals' brains can be rewired via intense auditory behavioral training, said Lin. The intricacies of a brain's wiring remains one of the largest puzzles before scientific researchers who have spent years to solve pieces of the complex mechanism. Yet for every question answered, more seem to appear. So when the UMMC team, working with scientists at the University of California in San Francisco, discovered the potential reset button, the discovery immediately drew questions of what the findings could mean for the future of autism treatments and, … Continue reading →

A BRADFORD stroke victim who recovered quickly after doctors treated him in record time is backing a charity's new campaign to help save more lives. The life-threatening 5cm clot in Keith Robertshaw's brain in July 2013 was the biggest doctors at at Bradford Royal Infirmary had seen, but he was given a wonder drug just 22 minutes after he got through A&Es doors - halving the national average time taken at stroke treatment centres of excellence. Now Mr Robertshaw, 72, from Allerton, is recovering and backing a new initiative by the Stroke Association to get more people familiar with signs of a stroke, known as the FAST Test. It identifies the three most common symptoms of a stroke or mini-stroke and the right action to take. FAST stands for Face - can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped? Arm weakness - can the person raise both arms? Speech problems - can the person speak clearly and understand what you say? And finally, Time to call 999. Mr Robertshaw and his family believe the FAST Test made a huge impact on his recovery and that swift action from his wife, Rita, meant he got the treatment he needed … Continue reading →