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Query: UMLS:C0004352 (autism)
 32,579 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

It is suggested that damage by mild trauma, viruses or bone disease to the otic capsule or to the membranes between the cochlea and the middle ear is common, and involved in many syndromes of obscure etiology. The clinical perilymph fistula (PF) syndrome can consist of any combination of the following: tinnitus, deafness, phonophobia, vertigo, ataxia, otalgia, facial palsy, headache, diplopia, blackouts, psychological distress. The following testable hypotheses are proposed: otitis media is due to perilymph in the middle ear, with secondary changes resulting from infection or inflammation: otosclerosis results from a slow leak in the presence of enzymes promoting bone growth: Meniere's syndrome follows reduced perilymph support for the endolymphatic system: Bell's palsy results from a perilymph provoked oedema in the bony facial nerve canal: PFs may be responsible for progressive rubella deafness, and for some cases of migraine, epilepsy, anxiety neurosis and hysteria: psychiatric sequelae of the PF syndrome predominate in the post-concussional syndrome and infantile autism: organisms can pass from the throat into the spinal fluid, causing meningitis or encephalitis. The tinnitus and vertigo are caused by random labyrinthine fluid movements, the headache and diplopia by reduced spinal fluid pressure.
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PMID:Perilymph fistula: a cause of auditory, vestibular, neurological and psychiatric disorder. 78 62

The author describes a previously healthy man who contracted herpes encephalitis at the age of 31 years, and over the following months developed all the symptoms considered diagnostic of autism. This case report casts doubt on the notion of autism as an exclusively developmental disorder. It is suggested that temporal lobe damage may cause autism in some cases.
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PMID:Autistic syndrome with onset at age 31 years: herpes encephalitis as a possible model for childhood autism. 174 18

Under the pathological conditions, the VEP may show changes in amplitude, latency, or waveform in one or more of its components. The major advantage of the pattern reversal VEP over the flash VEP lies in smaller variability in the waveform and latency of its components in the healthy population. The flash VEP is, however, particularly useful to infants and newborns. The variation in the waveform of the flash VEP was evaluated, and Type V was abnormal waveform. Subsequently, patients with various CNS diseases were examined. Acute hemiplegic patients showed high amplitude or increased latency patterns. In 45 percent of the West syndrome cases, VEP showed abnormal responses. The patients with asphyxia, respiratory distress syndrome and mental retardation showed increased latency. Latency was decreased in hypoglycemia and hypocalcemia of newborns, and it was increased or decreased in autism and epilepsy. In our study, it was concluded that the rhythmic after-discharge is a true response. This assumption is supported by the following observations: (1) the after-discharge of VEP appeared before the occurrence of the alpha-wave in EEG; (2) the frequency of the after-discharge was generally higher than that in EEG; and (3) the frequency of the after-discharge did not change between the conditions of the resting state and hyperventilation. There was no after-discharge in VEP in patients with a history of encephalitis even when their IQs were normal, and the latency was increased in pattern reversal VEP.
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PMID:[Visual evoked potential]. 271 54

Herpes simplex viral encephalitis is a fairly common nonepidemic encephalitis which produces severe neurological sequelae in survivors. Most viral infections of the central nervous system produce diffuse damage, but the herpes simplex virus demonstrates a predilection for localization in the temporal and orbitofrontal regions of the brain. This case study illustrates the highly significant language difficulties, marked memory deficits, and propensity for physical aggression following temporal lobe damage brought about by herpes encephalitis, and presents the usefulness of a new diagnostic measure in delineating such a variable cognitive pattern.
J Autism Dev Disord 1989 Jun
PMID:A case study of the cognitive and behavioral deficits of temporal lobe damage in herpes simplex encephalitis. 274 95

A girl aged 9 years with Rasmussen's encephalitis previously treated by left temporal lobectomy suddenly developed prolonged attacks of extremely rapid respirations associated with poverty of body movements and greatly reduced facial movements with loss of speech. Her comprehension appeared intact and she responded to certain requests. Her eye gaze behaviour suggested a high degree of vigilance. The attacks would last from minutes to hours and were repeated up to a dozen times daily. In the context of the stress generated by the illness and other family problems the attacks had been mistaken for an hysterical elaboration. Their ictal nature was confirmed by EEG/video monitoring. Possible links with other developmental language disorders associated with epilepsy are discussed, including a model of autism.
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PMID:Epileptic akinetic mutism: following temporal lobectomy for Rasmussen's syndrome. 898 62

Formerly thought to be a neurodegenerative disease, Rett syndrome (RS) is a neurodevelopmental arrest of the brain that almost exclusively affects females and occurs in a variety of racial and ethnic groups worldwide. RS begins in late infancy and is characterized by autistic and dementia-like behavior, ataxia, and purposeless hand movements. Its cause and mode of transmission are unknown in over 90% of cases; however, there is strong and convincing evidence that genetic factors play a major role. The reported incidence varies, but in the US, as many as one quarter to one third of female children in mental wards/institutions may be affected. RS has been mistaken for numerous other conditions, including autism, cerebral palsy, and mental retardation, but the clinical picture is unique: No other condition has a period of rapid deterioration followed by apparent stabilization or even improvement in autistic features, eye contact, seizure activity, and hand stereotypies. The diagnosis is supported by deceleration of head growth, evidence of neurologic regression with associated neurologic signs, and purposeless hand stereotypies, with a clinical history of developmental regression. The differential diagnosis often involves ruling out syndromes with similar signs of neurodevelopmental arrest--for example, meningitis or encephalitis; chromosomal disorders such as Angelman's syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome; metabolic disorders such as ornithine carbamoyltransferase deficiency; disorders of organic acids and amino acids; neurovisceral storage diseases; mitochondrial cytopathy; and Batten disease, or infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis. Management encompasses a comprehensive medical, therapeutic, educational, and psychosocial approach, best provided through a team in collaboration with the community agencies that serve families and children with special needs.
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PMID:Understanding, Recognizing, and Treating Rett Syndrome. 974 85

This study evaluates the comorbidity of epilepsy as a variable supporting a viral hypothesis in Autism. Data covering a 30-year period (1960-1989), including general population live births, autistic births, and incidence of viral encephalitis and viral meningitis, were collected for Israel. 290 autistic births were evaluated. The annual birth pattern of subjects with comorbid epilepsy fit the seasonality of viral meningitis. These findings support the role of viral C.N.S. infections in the causality of this disorder.
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PMID:Autistic subjects with comorbid epilepsy: a possible association with viral infections. 1008 Sep 66

Autism is a childhood onset neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by reciprocal social deficits, communication impairment, and rigid ritualistic interests, with the onset almost always before three years of age. Although the etiology of the disorder is strongly influenced by genes, environmental factors are also important. In this context, several reports have described its association with known medical conditions, including infections affecting the central nervous system. In this report, we describe an 11-year-old Asian youngster who developed the symptoms of autism following an episode of herpes encephalitis. In contrast to previous similar reports, imaging studies suggested a predominant involvement of the frontal lobes. At follow-up after three years, he continued to show the core deficits of autism. This case further supports the role of environmental factors, such as infections, in the etiology of autism, and suggests that in a minority of cases, autistic symptoms can develop in later childhood.
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PMID:Autistic symptoms following herpes encephalitis. 1236 75

Measles virus is the most infectious transmissible agent causing human disease and has probably been responsible for the deaths of more children than any other single cause. In addition, infection with the natural virus causes many severe complications, including encephalitis, deafness and pneumonia. The introduction of live attenuated vaccines, either singly or as the measles-mumps-rubella combined vaccine, has dramatically reduced the occurrence of disease and in countries where vaccine uptake is high, indigenous disease has been virtually eliminated. Even though the current vaccines are very efficient, they do have their limitations. Children are most at risk during the first year of life and for most of this period, maternal antibodies prevent effective immunization. In addition, the current measles vaccines are relatively heat labile which causes difficulty in tropical areas. In recent years, vaccination rates in some industrial countries have been adversely affected by fears that measles vaccines are linked to inflammatory bowel diseases and autism. Although there is no conclusive evidence to support these fears, they still remain and probably contribute to poor vaccine uptake in some regions and sections of society. Although severe complications from vaccination are extremely rare, mild local reactions are more common. Consequently, in countries where measles is declining or has been eliminated, the fear of side effects of vaccination may encourage the development of vaccines that do not rely on virus replication to take effect.
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PMID:Will the current measles vaccines ever eradicate measles? 1290 74

Serious neurological disorders reported following whole-cell pertussis in comparison to acellular pertussis vaccines were evaluated. The Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) was analyzed for Emergency Department (ED) visits, life-threatening reactions, hospitalizations, disabilities, deaths, seizures, infantile spasms, encephalitis/encephalopathy, autism, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and speech disorders reported with an initial onset of symptoms within 3 days following whole-cell pertussis and acellular pertussis vaccines among those residing in the US from 1997 to 1999. Controls were employed to evaluate potential biases in VAERS. Evaluations as to whether whole-cell and acellular vaccines were administered to populations of similar age and sex were undertaken because these factors might influence the study's results. Statistical increases were observed for all events examined following whole-cell pertussis vaccination in comparison to acellular pertussis vaccination, excepting cerebellar ataxia. Reporting biases were minimal in VAERS, and whole-cell and acellular pertussis vaccines were administered to populations of similar age and sex. Biologic mechanisms for the increased reactogenicity of whole-cell pertussis vaccines may stem from the fact that whole-cell pertussis vaccines contain 3,000 different proteins, whereas DTaP contains two to five proteins. Whole-cell pertussis vaccine contains known neurotoxins including: endotoxin, pertussis toxin and adenylate cyclase. Our results, and conclusions by the US Institute of Medicine, suggest an association between serious neurological disorders and whole-cell pertussis immunization. In light of the presence of a safer and at least equally efficacious acellular pertussis vaccine alternative, the Japanese and US switch to using acellular pertussis vaccine seems well justified. Other countries using whole-cell pertussis-containing vaccines should consider following suite in the near future.
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PMID:An evaluation of serious neurological disorders following immunization: a comparison of whole-cell pertussis and acellular pertussis vaccines. 1516 69


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