Dr. Sula Wolff

Dr. Sula Wolff, researcher and founder of the Association of Child Psychiatrists and Psychologists, was highlighted in the Edinburgh Evening News today. She passed away last September at the age of 85.

Dr. Wolff was born in Germany in 1924. When the Nazi party rose to power, her family fled to Britain, where she was educated and practiced clinical psychiatry. In 1969 she wrote the classic Children Under Stress on how children and adolescents cope with stressors like new experiences and death. She was a strong advocate for children with autism, described by a friend as a "pioneer dissecting and rebuilding multiple complex 'pictures' of the different phenotypes from severe autism to the milder Asperger's syndrome."

You can read her mini-biography here.

Autism Society of America

The Autism Society of America is an excellent source for parents, professionals, and other who deal with autism on a regular basis. At the Autism Society of America, you can discover frequently asked questions about autism, symptoms, education and treatment options as well as tips on how families can learn to cope together. The Autism Society of America also provides several links to websites that provide useful information on how to get services and aid for those in your life that have autism.

Brain Imaging May Help Diagnose ASDs

A team at the Children's Hospital in Philadelphia, supported by grants from the NIH, Autism Speaks, and others, have used magnetic signals from brain activity to discover that children with autism spectrum disorders process sound a fraction of a second slower than their peers.

So far, doctors have relied on anecdotal evidence and non-concrete patterns like speech development to recognize autism spectrum disorders. With refinement, this finding may provide an objective biological measurement for diagnosis.

You can read the Science Daily press release of the study here.

Art and Autism

Art and Autism: An Exploration of Identity by Rahila Weed explores dialogues on the subject of disability, social identity and autism. Weed explains these topics by looking closley at the artwork of three boys diagnosed with autism. Weed draws on her experiences as an art teacher to look into how these boys are defined by autism and also examine the frameworks that are used to understand autism and their being in the world.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Autism Clusters in California

Researchers at the UC Davis MIND institute studied the prevalence of autism in children born between 1996 and 2000 in California, and found that the number of diagnoses in ten key wealthy, primarily Caucasian regions was 70% higher than in less affluent areas.

The study authors do not believe these "clusters" arise from a common environmental factor, but from the residents' higher levels of education and superior access to health care. Web MD sums up the most probable cause:

"The California DDS [Department of Developmental Services] does not go out and look for kids with autism. Parents have to go to the DDS and seek services. Better educated women are more likely to know about these services -- and are more likely to have access to doctors who can diagnose their child's autism."

Epidemiologist Irva Hertz-Picciotto, a senior author in the team, said that the study did not yield the 'smoking gun' of autism, as they had hoped. It's back to square one: "We are casting a wide net, looking at everything we can--pesticides, medical conditions in the mother, medications, flame retardants, etc."

You can read more about the study in the Los Angeles Times or WebMD.

Autism : an introduction to psychological theory

Autism:
an introduction to psychological theory by Francesca Happe provides an overview of current psychological theory and research that incorporates the currently believed work on the biological foundations, cognitive consequences, and behavioral symptoms of people with autism. Happe focuses her discussion in the book on the cognitive approaches that deal with thought and feeling of those with autism and tries to offer better approaches to effectively managing the behavior of people with autism in the world.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Public Hearing for First Steps

On January 20th at 10am, a public hearing for proposed changes to the First Steps program will be held at the Indiana Government Center South (IGCS) Auditorium in Indianapolis.


First Steps is a state-wide agency that serves parents of children ages zero to three with developmental disabilities. The program currently offers Assistive Technology, SLP services, nutrition/medical/nursing services, family education, occupational therapy, transportation and more to Indiana residents.

If you wish to participate and give a 10-minute testimony, bring a written copy of your comments. If you cannot attend but wish to give input, you can mail your testimony (consisting of your name, title, and address, specific concerns, and recommended actions to be
taken) on or after January 27 to:

First Steps Early Intervention System
Bureau of Child Development Services
402 W. Washington St., Room W-364, MS-51
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Attn: FS Cost Participation

If accommodations are needed for a person with a disability to attend, call Cathy Robinson at (317) 233-6094.