The Montefiore-Einstein Rigidity Scale-Revised (MERS-R): Development, administration, reliability, and validity in child and adult Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Background: Rigidity contributes to severity and functional impairment in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There is an unmet need for a valid, reliable, and sensitive outcome measure to assess rigidity in ASD.

Objective: To develop and validate the Montefiore-Einstein Rigidity Scale-Revised (MERS-R) to assess the Behavioral Rigidity Domain (BRD), Cognitive Rigidity Domain (CRD), and Protest Domain (PD).

Challenges in assessing change in autistic adults: scale limitations and discrepancies in reporting in clinical trials.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder marked by deficits in social communication and social interaction, together with restricted and/or repetitive patterns of behaviours, activities or interests. As more adults are being diagnosed with ASD, and more diagnosed children are aging into adulthood, the need for effective treatments and support services for autistic adults is quickly growing. As such, clinical research targeting autistic adults has emerged in recent years.

Intranasal oxytocin versus placebo for hyperphagia and repetitive behaviors in children with Prader-Willi Syndrome: A randomized controlled pilot trial.

Objective: The effects of intranasal oxytocin and placebo on hyperphagia and repetitive behaviors were compared in children and adolescents with Prader Willi Syndrome (PWS).

Methods: Children and adolescents with PWS were enrolled in an 8-week double-blind placebo-controlled intranasal oxytocin randomized trial. Twenty-three (23) subjects were assigned to oxytocin (N = 11) or placebo (N = 12).

Randomized crossover feasibility trial of helminthic ova versus placebo for repetitive behaviors in adult autism spectrum disorder.

Inflammatory mechanisms are implicated in the aetiology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and use of the immunomodulator Ova (TSO) is a novel treatment approach. This pilot study determined the effect sizes for TSO versus placebo on repetitive behaviours, irritability and global functioning in adults with ASD. A 28-week double-blind, randomised two-period crossover study of TSO versus placebo in ten ASD adults, aged 17-35, was completed, with a 4-week washout between each 12-week period at Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

A double-blind placebo-controlled trial of fluoxetine for repetitive behaviors and global severity in adult autism spectrum disorders.

Objective: The effects of fluoxetine and placebo on repetitive behaviors and global severity were compared in adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).

Method: Adults with ASDs were enrolled in a 12-week double-blind placebo-controlled fluoxetine trial. Thirty-seven were randomly assigned to fluoxetine (N=22) or placebo (N=15).

Neuropsychological characteristics as predictors of SSRI treatment response in depressed subjects.

Studies suggest that neuropsychological measures may provide prognostic information regarding SSRI treatment response, yet it is unclear which specific cognitive domains are the most effectual predictors. The aim of this study was to characterize the cognitive profile associated with SSRI nonresponse using a comprehensive set of neuropsychological tests. Participants (N = 32) met criteria for current major depressive episode.

Psychomotor slowing as a predictor of fluoxetine nonresponse in depressed outpatients.

Objective: This study examined the utility of baseline psychomotor speed, measured with neuropsychological tests, to predict fluoxetine response in moderately depressed outpatients. The authors hypothesized that since psychomotor slowing in depressed patients has been linked to reduced dopaminergic neurotransmission, patients with slowing would be unresponsive to fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.

Method: After baseline neuropsychological testing, patients were treated openly with fluoxetine for 12 weeks.

Are there differences between women's and men's antidepressant responses?

Objective: The study examined a large data set to determine whether patients' sex affected the outcome of antidepressant treatment.

Method: Data for 1,746 patients aged 18-65 years who had been treated with tricyclic antidepressants, monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), fluoxetine, or placebo were examined in a retrospective analysis to determine whether men and women differed in their responses to antidepressants. To examine the effect of menopausal status in the absence of data on individual patients' menopausal status, results for female patients younger or older than age 50, 52, 54, and 56 were compared.