The Neuroscience of Autism Spectrum Disorders


Book Description

Autism is no longer considered a rare disease, and the Center for Disease Control now estimates that upwards of 730,000 children in the US struggle with this isolating brain disorder. New research is leading to greater understanding of and ability to treat the disorder at an earlier age. It is hoped that further genetic and imaging studies will lead to biologically based diagnostic techniques that could help speed detection and allow early, more effective intervention. Edited by two leaders in the field, this volume offers a current survey and synthesis of the most important findings of the neuroscience behind autism of the past 20 years. With chapters authored by experts in each topic, the volume explores etiology, neuropathology, imaging, and pathways/models. Offering a broad background of ASDs with a unique focus on neurobiology, the volume offers more than the others on the market with a strictly clinical focus or a single authored perspective that fails to offer expert, comprehensive coverage. Researchers and graduate students alike with an interest in developmental disorders and autism will benefit, as will autism specialists across psychology and medicine looking to expand their expertise. Uniquely explores ASDs from a neurobiological angle, looking to uncover the molecular/cellular basis rather than to merely catalog the commonly used behavioral interventions Comprehensive coverage synthesizes widely dispersed research, serving as one-stop shopping for neurodevelopmental disorder researchers and autism specialists Edited work with chapters authored by leaders in the field around the globe - the broadest, most expert coverage available




Autism Spectrum Disorder


Book Description

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Perspectives from Psychoanalysis and Neuroscience, offers a guide to understanding and treating the ASD toddler from the dual perspectives of psychoanalysis and neurofunction through describing in great detail intensive treatments of four children who began therapy as toddlers. The authors hypothesize that dyadic therapy and Reflective Network Therapy can impact a child by modifying the biochemistry of the brain, resulting in alteration of emotion and cognition. Their chapter on neurobiological mechanisms of change describes these hypotheses in depth.




Neurotribes


Book Description

This New York Times–bestselling book upends conventional thinking about autism and suggests a broader model for acceptance, understanding, and full participation in society for people who think differently. What is autism? A lifelong disability, or a naturally occurring form of cognitive difference akin to certain forms of genius? In truth, it is all of these things and more—and the future of our society depends on our understanding it. Wired reporter Steve Silberman unearths the secret history of autism, long suppressed by the same clinicians who became famous for discovering it, and finds surprising answers to the crucial question of why the number of diagnoses has soared in recent years. Going back to the earliest days of autism research, Silberman offers a gripping narrative of Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger, the research pioneers who defined the scope of autism in profoundly different ways; he then goes on to explore the game-changing concept of neurodiversity. NeuroTribes considers the idea that neurological differences such as autism, dyslexia, and ADHD are not errors of nature or products of the toxic modern world, but the result of natural variations in the human genome. This groundbreaking book will reshape our understanding of the history, meaning, function, and implications of neurodiversity in our world.




Handbook of Medical Neuropsychology


Book Description

This handbook celebrates the abundantly productive interaction of neuropsychology and medicine. This interaction can be found in both clinical settings and research l- oratories, often between research teams and clinical practitioners. It accounts for the rapidity with which awareness and understanding of the neuropsychological com- nents of many common medical disorders have recently advanced. The introduction of neuropsychology into practice and research involving conditions without obvious neurological components follows older and eminently successful models of integrated care and treatment of the classical brain disorders. In the last 50 years, with the growing understanding of neurological disorders, neuropsychologists and medical specialists in clinics, at bedside, and in laboratories together have contributed to important clinical and scienti c advances in the und- standing of the common pathological conditions of the brain: stroke, trauma, epilepsy, certain movement disorders, tumor, toxic conditions (mostly alcohol-related), and degenerative brain diseases. It is not surprising that these seven pathological con- tions were the rst to receive attention from neuropsychologists as their behavioral symptoms can be both prominent and debilitating, often with serious social and economic consequences.




Autism


Book Description

Autism: The Movement Sensing Perspective is the result of a collaborative effort by parents, therapists, clinicians, and researchers from all disciplines in science including physics, engineering, and applied mathematics. This book poses questions regarding the current conceptualization and approach to the study of autism, providing an alternative unifying data-driven framework grounded in physiological factors. This book reaches beyond subjective descriptions of autistic phenomena and embraces a new era of objective measurements, analyses, and statistical inferences. The authors harness activities from the nervous systems across the brain and body (often in tandem), and introduce a platform for the comprehensive personalized phenotyping of individuals with autism. The impact of this approach is discussed to advance the development of tailored treatments options, enhance the ability to longitudinally track symptomatology, and to fundamentally empower affected individuals and their families. This book encompasses a new era for autism research and treatments, and our continuous effort to collectively empower and embrace the autistic community.




Neuronal and Synaptic Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability


Book Description

Neuronal and Synaptic Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability provides the latest information on Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), the lifelong neurodevelopmental disorders that present in early childhood and affect how individuals communicate and relate to others and their surroundings. In addition, three quarters of ASD patients also manifest severe intellectual disability. Though certain genes have been implicated, ASDs remain largely a mystery, and research looking into causes and cellular deficits are crucial for better understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders. Despite the prevalence and insidious nature of this disorder, this book remains to be an extensive resource of information and background on the state of current research in the field. The book serves as a reference for this purpose, and discusses the crucial role synaptic activity plays in proper brain function. In addition, the volume discusses the neurodevelopmental synaptopathies and serves as a resource for scientists and clinicians in all biomedical science specialties. This research has been crucial for recent studies that have provided a rationale for the development of pharmacological agents able to counteract functional synaptic anomalies and potentially ameliorate some ASD symptoms. - Introduces the genetic and non-genetic causes of autism and associated intellectual disabilities - Describes the genes implicated in autistic spectrum disorders and their function - Considers major individual genetic causes of autism, Rett syndrome, Fragile X syndrome, and other autism spectrum disorders, as well as their classification as synaptopathies - Presents a thorough discussion of the clinical aspects of multiple neurodevelopmental disorders and the experimental models that exist to study their pathophysiology in vitro and in vivo, including animal models and patient-derived stem cell culture




Autism and the Brain


Book Description

For years, the typical presentation of autism—the developmental delays, the social and linguistic deficits—has been well known. Despite great variation among children with this condition, certain symptoms are considered hallmarks of the disorder. Less understood is why these symptoms come together to construct autism. And as autism rates continue to rise, this information is ever more vital to accurate diagnosis and treatment. Autism and the Brain offers answers by showing a new neuropsychology of the autistic spectrum, reviewing general brain organization, and relating specific regions and structures to specific clinical symptoms. The author identifies deficiencies in areas of the left-hemisphere associated with the self and identity as central to autism. From this primary damage, the brain further reorganizes to compensate, explaining the diverse behaviors among low- and high-functioning individuals as well as autistic savants. The result is a unique three-dimensional view of brain structure, function, and pathology, with in-depth focus on how the autistic brain: Perceives the world. Understands and uses words. Perceives faces. Understands spatial relations and numbers. Understands feelings and registers emotions. Perceives the self as separate from others. Acts in the world. Challenging readers to re-think their assumptions, Autism and the Brain is breakthrough reading for researchers, clinicians, and graduate students in fields as varied as child and adolescent psychiatry; clinical child, school, and developmental psychology; neuroscience/neurobiology; special education and educational psychology; social work; communication disorders; and public health and policy.




The Neuroscience of Autism


Book Description

The Neuroscience of Autism provides a comprehensive accounting of autism spectrum disorders by integrating scientific findings from behavioral, cognitive and neurobiological research. The book begins by defining autism, identifying characteristics and prevalence, exploring its history, and then moving on to the cognitive and social bases of behavioral symptoms, the brain bases of behavioral and cognitive symptoms, and finally, intervention practices. It examines theoretical models such as weak central coherence, enhanced perceptual functioning, and the extreme male brain hypothesis. Finally, the book addresses the increased attention on the brain connectivity model of autism, looking at the synchronization of brain activity across different brain areas, the causal influence of a brain region on another, and white matter cable connections in the brain. - Delves into the increasing prevalence of autism in the United States - Focuses on screening tools for early identification - Discusses the neuroanatomical differences seen in individuals with autism - Examines the inferences gained from functional MRI studies of autism




Autism Spectrum Disorders


Book Description

Autism spectrum disorders are developmental disorders. Individuals with autism spectrum disorders develop differently. These differences are usually present in social interaction, communication, and sensory processing, and become visible through a wide variety of behavioral responses that differ from individuals without autism spectrum disorders. Despite significant research efforts, the exact causes of autism spectrum disorders remain poorly understood; however, researchers have gained extensive insights into possible pathomechanisms, even at the molecular level of cells. Many diagnostic criteria have been developed, adapted, and improved. The eight chapters in this book highlight the current state-of-the-art in many areas of autism spectrum disorders. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the epidemiology of autism spectrum disorders and the current knowledge of the underlying pathogenic mechanisms. Chapter 2 summarizes the diagnostic criteria and procedures and highlights present and upcoming therapeutic strategies. Chapter 3 reviews the adverse events and trauma in people with autism spectrum disorders. Chapters 4 and 5 focus on atypical sensory processing, and Chapter 6 discusses the genetic overlap of autism spectrum disorders with other neuropsychiatric disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, and schizophrenia. Chapter 7 focuses on the contribution of abnormalities in mitochondria, and chapter 8 discusses gut-brain interactions and a potential role for microbiota in autism spectrum disorders. This book is aimed primarily at clinicians and scientists, but many areas will also be of interest to the layperson.




Asperger Syndrome or High-Functioning Autism?


Book Description

The precise relationship between high-functioning autism and Asperger Syndrome is still a subject of debate. This volume provides a general overview of the disorder and present diverse opinions on diagnosis and assessment, neuropsychological issues, treatment, and related conditions. A special section features personal essays by individuals diagnosed with autism or Asperger Syndrome. The result is a comprehensive and useful survey of the current state of the field that will be of great interest to clinicians, teachers, researchers, and parents.