How useful are screening instruments for toddlers to predict outcome at age 4? General development, language skills, and symptom severity in children with a false positive screen for autism spectrum disorder.

Screening instruments for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often generate many false positives. It is argued that these children may have other developmental difficulties and are also in need of thorough assessment and early intervention. The current study looked at the predictive validity of positive screens on the Checklist for Early Signs of Developmental Disorders (CESDD) and the Early Screening of Autistic Traits questionnaire (ESAT) at age 2 towards language, cognitive function, and symptom severity at age 4.

Developmental changes in mu suppression to observed and executed actions in autism spectrum disorders.

There has been debate over whether disruptions in the mirror neuron system (MNS) play a key role in the core social deficits observed in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). EEG mu suppression during the observation of biological actions is believed to reflect MNS functioning, but understanding of the developmental progression of the MNS and EEG mu rhythm in both typical and atypical development is lacking. To provide a more thorough and direct exploration of the development of mu suppression in individuals with ASD, a sample of 66 individuals with ASD and 51 typically developing individuals of 6-17 years old were pooled from four previously published studies employing similar EEG methodology.

Can child care workers contribute to the early detection of autism spectrum disorders? A comparison between screening instruments with child care workers versus parents as informants.

Several screening instruments for ASD in young children were developed during the last decades. Only few studies compare the discriminative power of these instruments in the same sample. In particular comparisons of instruments that use different informants are scarce in young children.

Screening for autism spectrum disorders in Flemish day-care centres with the checklist for early signs of developmental disorders.

A new screening instrument for ASD was developed that can be filled out by child care workers: the Checklist for Early Signs of Developmental Disorders (CESDD). The predictive validity of the CESDD was evaluated in a population of 6,808 children between 3 and 39 months attending day-care centres in Flanders. The CESDD had a sensitivity of .

Differential effects of atomoxetine on executive functioning and lexical decision in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and reading disorder.

Objective: The effects of a promising pharmacological treatment for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), atomoxetine, were studied on executive functions in both ADHD and reading disorder (RD) because earlier research demonstrated an overlap in executive functioning deficits in both disorders. In addition, the effects of atomoxetine were explored on lexical decision.

Methods: Sixteen children with ADHD, 20 children with ADHD + RD, 21 children with RD, and 26 normal controls were enrolled in a randomized placebo-controlled crossover study.

EEG study of the mirror neuron system in children with high functioning autism.

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are characterised by an impaired imitation, thought to be critical for early affective, social and communicative development. One neurological system proposed to underlie this function is the mirror neuron system (MNS) and previous research has suggested a dysfunctional MNS in ASD. The EEG mu frequency, more precisely the reduction of the mu power, is considered to be an index for mirror neuron functioning.

How distinctive are ADHD and RD? Results of a double dissociation study.

The nature of the comorbidity between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Reading Disability (RD) was examined using a double dissociation design. Children were between 8 and 12 years of age and entered into four groups: ADHD only (n = 24), ADHD+RD (n = 29), RD only (n = 41) and normal controls (n = 26). In total, 120 children participated in the study; 38 girls and 82 boys.

Response inhibition and immediate arousal in children with high-functioning autism.

The current study compared high-functioning children with autism (HFA) and a peer control group on an immediate arousal task measuring response inhibition. In one condition go stimuli were presented whereas in another condition a tone preceded the go stimulus. The tone caused an immediate arousal effect, which resulted in a reaction time decrease and an error rate increase.

Event-rate manipulation and its effect on arousal modulation and response inhibition in adults with high functioning autism.

The aim of the current study was to evaluate arousal modulation and response inhibition in adults with high functioning autism (HFA). Using a go/no-go paradigm with varying presentation rate, it was found that performance efficiency (Mean RT, Standard Deviation of RT and Errors of Commission) in adults with HFA was the same as in the control group in the condition with a slow (6 s) and medium (2 s) presentation rate, but that it decreased in the condition with a fast presentation rate (1 s): many errors of commission were made in this condition. Findings were interpreted in terms of an arousal modulation deficiency that interfered with the capacity to inhibit responses in HFA.