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

Abnormalities in anatomy and function of the cranial nerve motor nuclei and brain stem structures have been demonstrated in some people with autism and can be modeled in rats by exposure to valproic acid (VPA) during very early nervous system developmental stages (neural tube closure). The aim of this study was to investigate if VPA will have an impact on nociception in rats because of reported hypoalgesia in a subgroup of autistic patients. Pregnant females were treated ip with 600 mg/kg of sodium valproate on day 12.5 of gestation. Nociception was measured in offsprings by tail-flick and thermal paw withdrawal tests in two developmental stages: prepubertal (80-90 g) and adulthood (360-440 g). Results showed significant differences in pain sensitivity with hypoalgesia in male rats treated with VPA compared to male control in both developmental stages. The outcome of our study suggests that rats exposed prenatally to VPA show abnormalities in nociception similar to those observed in human autistic patients. Interestingly, naloxone (1 mg/kg) had no impact on nociception in offsprings of VPA-treated rats.
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PMID:Nociceptive changes in rats after prenatal exposure to valproic acid. 1199 73

Contingent shock (CS) has been used in a number of studies to suppress health-threatening self-injurious behavior of individuals with mental retardation and autism. As sustained suppression is an issue of concern, research into procedural variables of CS is needed. In this study, clinical evidence was used to infer a variable that might be of relevance for the application of clinical contingent shock, that is, to assess the effect of single versus repeated shock at a specific location on the body. With pain intensity and startle response as dependent variables, shocks were administered to 48 healthy volunteers. Electric shocks were identical to those that used in clinical practice. The second shock in succession to the same location of the body produced higher pain intensity ratings than the first shock and that the third shock in succession to the same location of the body produced higher pain intensity ratings than the second shock in succession. Startle responses, however, failed to be affected in this direction. The latter result is consistent with a previous study. Our data suggest that repeated shock to the same location is likely to be more effective to establish suppression than repeated shock to different locations.
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PMID:Effects of single and repeated shock on perceived pain and startle response in healthy volunteers. 1236 52

Vaccines have turned many childhood diseases into distant memories in industrialized countries. However, questions have been raised about the safety of some vaccines because of rare but serious adverse effects that have been attributed to them. Pain, swelling, and redness at the injection site are common local reactions to vaccines. Fever and irritability may occur after some immunizations. Currently, no substantial evidence links measles-mumps-rubella vaccine to autism, or hepatitis B vaccine to multiple sclerosis. Thimerosal is being eliminated from routine childhood vaccines because of concerns that multiple immunizations with vaccines containing this preservative could exceed recommended mercury exposures. Family physicians should be knowledgeable about vaccines so that they can inform their patients of the benefits of immunization and any proven risks. If immunization rates fall, the incidence of vaccine-preventable illnesses may rise.
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PMID:Vaccine adverse events: separating myth from reality. 1248 93

Providing nursing care for children with autism or autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) can be challenging. As part of a larger study of 62 children with autism ages 3-8 years (Coplan et al., 2001; Levy et al., 2001) that required difficult procedures, strategies were developed for providing care that incorporated theories and knowledge from the disciplines of nursing, child development, psychology, applied behavior analysis, and pain management. Applications of these strategies are illustrated through the process of a physical exam, phlebotomy, and intravenous (IV) insertion during a health care visit. The nurse can develop a plan of care to achieve the goals of the visit and optimize the quality of the care for the child and family. Interventions presented can be individualized to each child.
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PMID:Caring for children and adolescents with autism who require challenging procedures. 1259 40

Vaccinations protect to a high degree against infectious diseases, but may cause side effects. In the Netherlands since 1962 the adverse events following immunizations are registered and analysed by the National Institute of Health and Environment (RIVM). Since 1983 a permanent Committee of the Dutch Health Council reviews adverse events reported to the RIVM. With the so-called killed vaccines the side effects are mainly local (redness, swelling, pain) or general (fever, listlessness, irritability, sleep and eating problems). They are seen mainly after DPT-IPV vaccination against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus and poliomyelitis. Some side effects occur rarely (collapse reactions, discoloured legs, persistent screaming and convulsions) and very rarely serious neurological events are reported. After MMR vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella, cases of arthritis, thrombocytopenia and ataxia are reported sporadically. Usually, they have a spontaneous recovery. During recent years a scala of diseases or symptoms have been associated with vaccination (presumed side effects). Careful and extensive investigations have shown that such hypotheses could not be supported. Examples are allergic diseases as asthma, diabetes mellitus, multiple sclerosis (after hepatitis B vaccination), autism and inflammatory bowel disease (after MMR vaccination) and sudden infant death syndrome. The total number of cases where at least a possible relation between side effects and vaccination is observed--apart from local reactions and moderate general symptoms--is very rare (about 0.25 per 1000 vaccinations) and does not balance the benefits from vaccination. There appears increasing doubt about the use and safety of vaccinations. More research is needed about the motives of people to choose for and against vaccination. The education about vaccination for parents and professionals who are involved with vaccination has to be improved. Internet can play an important role.
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PMID:[Childhood vaccinations anno 2004. II. The real and presumed side effects of vaccination]. 1503 89

Autism is a severe behavioral disorder characterized by pervasive impairments in social interactions, deficits in verbal and nonverbal communication, and stereotyped, repetitive patterns of behaviors and interests. Recently, a new rodent model of autism was created by exposure of rat fetuses to valproic acid (VPA) on the 12.5th day of gestation (VPA rats). The model has striking anatomical, pathological, and etiological similarities to human data; however, it has not been characterized behaviorally. In order to determine if VPA rats present behavioral aberrations observed in autism, their behavior was extensively evaluated in a battery of tests. The results of the present experiments demonstrate that VPA rats exhibit: (1) lower sensitivity to pain and higher sensitivity to nonpainful stimuli, (2) diminished acoustic prepulse inhibition, (3) locomotor and repetitive/stereotypic-like hyperactivity combined with lower exploratory activity, and (4) decreased number of social behaviors and increased latency to social behaviors. In addition, VPA rats showed delayed maturation, lower body weight, delayed motor development, and attenuated integration of a coordinated series of reflexes, delayed nest-seeking response mediated by olfactory system, and normal negative geotaxis. Interestingly, all behavioral aberrations described in this paper appear before puberty, which could distinguish the VPA rat model of autism from other animal models of neurodevelopmental disorders, especially rodent models of schizophrenia. Our results bring further support to validity of the proposed VPA animal model of autism, suggesting similarities between the observed pattern of behavioral alterations in VPA rats and features of disturbed behavior in autistic patients.
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PMID:Behavioral alterations in rats prenatally exposed to valproic acid: animal model of autism. 1523 91

In the United States and many other developed countries, active immunization of children has virtually eliminated poliomyelitis, measles, rubella, tetanus, and other diseases, such as disease due to Haemophilus influenzae type b. Individual vaccines can produce systemic or neurologic reactions ranging from minor events, such as pain and erythema at the injection site, to major complications, such as seizures, shock, encephalopathy, or death. Immunization programs have also generated considerable controversy, as witnessed by recent concerns regarding the relationship between vaccines or their constituents and autism or multiple sclerosis. This review summarizes current information regarding vaccines, the diseases that they prevent, and the potential relationships between vaccines and neurologic disease.
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PMID:Neurologic complications of immunization. 1544 87

Environmental enrichment has been repeatedly shown to affect multiple aspects of brain function, and is known to improve cognitive, behavioral, and histopathological outcome after brain injuries. The purpose of the present experiments was to determine the effect of an enriched environment on behavioral aberrations observed in male rats exposed to valproic acid on day 12.5 of gestation (VPA rats), and proposed on the basis of etiological, anatomical, and behavioral data as an animal model of autism. Environmental enrichment reversed almost all behavioral alterations observed in the model. VPA rats after environmental enrichment (VPA-E) compared to VPA rats reared in standard conditions have higher sensitivity to pain and lower sensitivity to nonpainful stimuli; stronger acoustic prepulse inhibition; lower locomotor, repetitive/stereotypic-like activity, and enhanced exploratory activity; decreased anxiety; increased number of social behaviors; and shorter latency to social explorations. In comparison with control animals (Con), VPA-E rats exhibited increased number of pinnings in adolescence and social explorations in adulthood, and were less anxious in the elevated plus maze. Similar differences in social behavior and anxiety were observed between control rats exposed to environmental enrichment (Con-E) and control group reared in standard conditions. These results suggest that postnatal environmental manipulations can counteract the behavioral alterations in VPA rats. We propose environmental enrichment as an important tool for the treatment of autism spectrum disorders.
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PMID:Environmental enrichment reverses behavioral alterations in rats prenatally exposed to valproic acid: issues for a therapeutic approach in autism. 1592 May 5

This report describes the development of an infant who was later diagnosed with autism, and a direct comparison of his development to that of his twin, from a prenatal period through the age of 4 years, through the examination of personal journals and medical records kept by the mother of the twins. Examination of these journals revealed several differences in development between the twins, some as early as 6 months of age. In the first year of life, the infants already differed in language development, social development, sleep patterns, and sensitivity to pain. This rare opportunity to view early autistic development gives direction to developmental theories of autism and clinically useful cues to early signs of autism.
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PMID:A retrospective journal-based case study of an infant with autism and his twin. 1603 67

Nonassociative learning is a basic neuroadaptive behavior exhibited across animal phyla and sensory modalities but its role in brain intelligence is unclear. Current literature on habituation and sensitization, the classic "dual process" of nonassociative learning, gives highly incongruous accounts between varying experimental paradigms. Here we propose a general theory of nonassociative learning featuring four base modes: habituation/primary sensitization in primary stimulus-response pathways, and desensitization/secondary sensitization in secondary stimulus-response pathways. Primary and secondary modes of nonassociative learning are distinguished by corresponding activity-dependent recall, or nonassociative gating, of neurotransmission memory. From the perspective of brain computation, nonassociative learning is a form of integral-differential calculus whereas nonassociative gating is a form of Boolean logic operator--both dynamically transforming the stimulus-response relationship. From the perspective of sensory integration, nonassociative gating provides temporal filtering whereas nonassociative learning affords low-pass, high-pass or band-pass/band-stop frequency filtering--effectively creating an intelligent sensory firewall that screens all stimuli for attention and resultant internal model adaptation and reaction. This unified framework ties together many salient characteristics of nonassociative learning and nonassociative gating and suggests a common kernel that correlates with a wide variety of sensorimotor integration behaviors such as central resetting and self-organization of sensory inputs, fail-safe sensorimotor compensation, integral-differential and gated modulation of sensorimotor feedbacks, alarm reaction, novelty detection and selective attention, as well as a variety of mental and neurological disorders such as sensorimotor instability, attention deficit hyperactivity, sensory defensiveness, autism, nonassociative fear and anxiety, schizophrenia, addiction and craving, pain sensitization and phantom sensations, etc.
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PMID:Nonassociative learning as gated neural integrator and differentiator in stimulus-response pathways. 1689 71


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