SINGAPORE: Health Minister Gan Kim Yong has said his ministry will consider the possible inclusion of more chronic conditions, including conditions such as epilepsy, into the Chronic Disease Management Programme (CDMP) as MOH continues to review the expansion of Medisave use. He was replying to MP for West Coast GRC Foo Mee Har who asked if long-term treatment of epilepsy can be covered under the subsidy scheme provided under the enhanced Medisave and Community Health Assist Scheme. Mr Gan said patients who require treatment for epilepsy will continue to enjoy subsidies at polyclinics. Currently, patients with any of the 10 conditions under the Chronic Disease Management Programme (CDMP) can tap on Medisave to pay for their treatments. In addition, those who qualify for CHAS can receive subsidised care at GP clinics. Five more conditions will be added to CDMP from 1 January 2014 - anxiety, osteoarthritis, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), nephritis/nephrosis and Parkinson's disease. Read this article: Health Ministry to consider coverage of more chronic conditions under CDMP … Continue reading →

CA Appeals Court Rules Public Insurance Must Cover Autism Treatment A therapy for children with autism must be covered by public insurance companies, a California appeals court has ruled. Applied Behavior Analysis — or ABA — "is a system in which every... By: consumerwatchdog … Continue reading →

Public release date: 16-Sep-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Connie Hughes connie.hughes@wolterskluwer.com 646-674-6348 Wolters Kluwer Health Philadelphia, Pa. (September 16, 2013) The hormone oxytocin could play a role in treating psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, according to a review article in the September Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health. Among other biological effects, oxytocin is "an important regulator of human social behaviors," according to the research review by Dr David Cochran of University of Massachusetts Medical School and colleagues. They discuss the preliminary but encouraging evidence that oxytocin could be a useful treatment for certain mental health diagnosesparticularly those involving impaired social functioning. A Common Hormonal Factor in Psychiatric Disorders? Oxytocin is a neuropeptide hormone, probably most familiar for its role in initiating labor and breast milk flow in pregnant women. But a growing body of evidence in animals and humans shows that it also plays an important role in regulating social behaviors. In their review, Dr Cochran and colleagues found evidence of oxytocin's involvement in "social decision making, evaluating and responding to social stimuli, mediating social interactions, and forming social memories" in … Continue reading →

Los Angeles (PRWEB) September 15, 2013 Autism Live is today launching a new online portal, called Parent 2 Parent, featuring informative two-minute clips to educate parents on all things related to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), ranging from Does my child have autism? to more targeted issues, such as How do I prepare for an IEP meeting? Viewers have unlimited access to the clips on the Parent 2 Parent YouTube playlist, located at http://goo.gl/1P2322. This series of videos will provide parents with answers and empower them to get the help their children need as quickly as possible, says Autism Live host Shannon Penrod, who knows firsthand the value of having immediate access to autism resources. Her son was diagnosed with autism in 2006. At the time, information on autism was not readily available to me. Other parents still find this to be an issue. Parent 2 Parent is designed to give parents of children with autism spectrum disorder useful tips in an easy-to-understand format, right at their fingertips. Autism Live is sponsored in part by the Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD), Inc., one of the worlds largest and most effective autism treatment providers offering evidence-based, state-of-the-art services to individuals … Continue reading →

(PRWEB) September 16, 2013 Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD), Inc., salutes the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for increasing consumer awareness of the ineffectiveness of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) as a treatment for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The FDA released a report on Aug. 22, 2013, stating that HBOT has not been clinically proven to cure or be effective in the treatment of autism, cancer, or diabetes, nor has it been approved by FDA. CARD published Randomized Trial Of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy For Children With Autism in the April-June 2010 issue of Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders. The study was conducted by Doreen Granpeesheh, Ph.D.; Jonathan Tarbox, Ph.D.; Dennis R. Dixon, Ph.D.; Arthur E. Wilke; Michael S. Allen, Psy.D.; and James Jeffrey Bradstreet, M.D. The purpose of the study was to test the hypothesis that HBOT would have a beneficial effect on ASD symptoms in the context of a double-blind placebo-controlled trial. This randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial compared HBOT used to deliver 24% oxygen at 1.3 atmospheric pressure (n = 18) to placebo (n = 16) in children with ASD. Both direct observational measures of behaviors symptomatic of autism and standardized psychological assessments were used to evaluate … Continue reading →

Public release date: 16-Sep-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Sheryl Weinstein 973-596-3436 New Jersey Institute of Technology NJIT Distinguished Professor Atam P. Dhawan, PhD, recently joined the autism community at the NJ State House to be recognized for improving public and private autism services. Dhawan, a noted electrical engineer and inventor in his own right, who heads NJIT's Interdisciplinary Design Studio (IDS) program, is also executive director of undergraduate research and innovation at NJIT. The IDS program is offered to Albert Dorman Honors College students at NJIT. Dhawan mentored an award-winning student team to develop innovative interactive toys integrated with the iLearnNEarn2 learning system developed by WebTeam Coporation, Somerset. The system provides customized toys with skill-learning protocols for autistic children, addressing clinical assessment-based specific needs while incorporating a curriculum supported by Eden Autism Services, Princeton, a nonprofit founded in 1975. WebTeam Corporation was founded in 2007 by Nish Parikh, developer of iLearnNEarn2 learning system; Parikh is a member of NJIT's IDS External Advisory Board. Responsible for developing a data analysis tool which was integrated into the interactive sensor-based toy were three still current NJIT seniors and one recent graduate: NJIT Alumna Amira Esseghir (2013), of Lawrenceville now a … Continue reading →

Rotary Club of York, PA, Meeting 9/11/2013, Stroke signs and Treatment The Rotary Club of York, PA, listens to Dr. Neda Jafari. STROKE is the 3rd leading cause of death in the United States, but STROKE is the leading cause of se... By: RotaryClubofYork … Continue reading →

People suffering from sleep apnea appeared more alert, youthful and attractive after undergoing treatment for two months, Medical News Today reported. In a study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 20 adults with obstructive sleep apnea - a condition linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, depression and stroke - were treated using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy. CPAP therapy requires patients to wear a face mask while they sleep in order to open their airway. The treatment can help relieve snoring, improve alertness and lower blood pressure. In order to measure the attractiveness of the patients, researchers used a system known as "photogrammetry" to capture 3D photos both before and two months after each patient underwent CPAP therapy. The volume and color of patients faces was analyzed using computer software and the before and after photos of each patient were also rated for measures of attractiveness by 22 volunteers. Overall, 68 percent of ratings indicated that patients looked more alert after treatment, 67 percent noted that they appeared more attractive and 64 percent characterized them as more youthful. Furthermore, the computer software analysis indicated a decrease in volume in the patients faces and less redness … Continue reading →