Publications by authors named "W J Mandy"

Background: Nearly 3% of adults have attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), although in the UK, most are undiagnosed. Adults with ADHD on average experience poorer educational and employment outcomes, worse physical and mental health and are more likely to die prematurely. No studies have yet used mortality data to examine the life expectancy deficit experienced by adults with diagnosed ADHD in the UK or worldwide.

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Ecological momentary assessments assess people's in-the-moment thoughts and behaviours in their daily lives in natural environments. The number of ecological momentary assessment studies with autistic people has increased over the last decade. For the first time, this review (1) summarises how well ecological momentary assessment works for allowing autistic people to describe and express their thoughts, emotions and experiences, and (2) provides suggestions for the design of ecological momentary assessment to make this research method more accessible to future autistic participants.

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Article Synopsis
  • Autism is a lifelong condition characterized by differences in social communication and repetitive behaviors, with individuals often facing challenges in achieving positive outcomes in adulthood due to a lack of support.
  • A feasibility randomized controlled trial is being conducted for an online peer-group intervention called 'Understanding You, Discovering You' (UYDY), aimed at improving the well-being of autistic individuals aged 16-25 during their transition to adulthood.
  • The trial will evaluate recruitment and retention rates, the acceptability of procedures, usual care received by participants, and variances in clinical outcome measures in order to prepare for a larger study in the future.
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There is evidence to suggest that sensory processing differences (SPDs) to external stimuli are a plausible underlying mechanism for mental health problems among autistic people. In the current systematic review, we examined the associations between, on the one hand, eleven types of SPDs and, on the other hand, internalising and externalising problems. The literature search was conducted on five databases (MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Web of Science, EMBASE, and CINAHL) between 1990 and August 2024.

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Autistic people often face both physical and mental health challenges throughout their lives, which can lead to a higher risk of premature death due to health inequalities. However, we know very little about the healthcare experiences of autistic older adults. In this study, we talked with 19 autistic adults aged 65 years or above living in the United Kingdom.

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