Autism

2023 - 3 - 14

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Image courtesy of "PhiladelphiaEagles.com"

Eagles Autism Foundation contributes $4.1 million to fund 20 pilot ... (PhiladelphiaEagles.com)

Eagles Autism Foundation to raise an additional $200K through a new matching gift designed to help Eagles Autism Challenge participants meet and exceed ...

The Foundation aims to inspire and engage the community, so together, we can provide much-needed support to make a lasting impact in the field of autism. The community grants were distributed to projects that proved to be evidence-based, were aligned with the Eagles Autism Foundation mission, and provided an immediate impact on the community. The Eagles Autism Foundation is dedicated to raising funds for innovative autism research and care programs. "We are committed to fostering a world of compassion and acceptance so that individuals with autism can live their best lives. The Eagles Autism Foundation is interested in all areas of basic, population, and clinical research and programs that are designed to elucidate the etiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of autism. All research proposals were evaluated for measurable outcomes and transformational impact in the field of autism. (Emanuel) DiCicco-Bloom and his esteemed panel of colleagues facilitated a thoughtful and well-organized scientific review process that went on to identify 20 projects, all of which have the potential to produce groundbreaking results in the field of autism. The following criteria were closely considered in weighing the merit of each application: significance, investigator(s), innovation, approach, and environment. The grants are a direct result of the proceeds raised by participants from the 2022 [Eagles Autism Challenge](https://www.eaglesautismchallenge.org/), in addition to other foundation-related fundraising initiatives throughout the year. Emanuel DiCicco-Bloom](https://molbiosci.rutgers.edu/faculty-research/faculty/faculty-detail/80-c-d/262-dicicco-bloom-emanuel), the lead scientific advisor from the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, and 17 nationally recognized researchers who were individually selected based on the areas represented in the research proposals. Supporting these efforts at CHOP and Drexel University will create a pipeline for the future, while attracting talent to our city. The community grants were awarded to

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Image courtesy of "BBC News"

Fewer Bristol children eligible for NHS autism diagnosis (BBC News)

Only children who meet certain criteria will be referred for an autism diagnosis in Bristol.

"The diagnosis gave him that explanation and allowed him to be able to use all the tools. "Because he is not in a priority group, I am unsure whether he will ever actually get an appointment for assessment," Ms Breitnauer told BBC Radio Bristol. "It is the understanding of themselves that comes with it. In a statement sent to Radio Bristol, Sirona said: "We have reviewed our processes and criteria to ensure that those children with the highest needs could be seen more quickly and we will continue to work with our partners and our funders to identify ways of reducing the overall wait times for all families." "That might be denied to other families who cannot afford to pay £2,000 for an assessment." She said the diagnosis was important for her son, who knew from a young age that he was "different".

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Image courtesy of "Spectrum"

Journal Club: Meta-analysis oversells popular autism screen ... (Spectrum)

The Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) accurately flags autistic toddlers, a new systematic review and meta-analysis suggests, ...

This doesn’t mean that the M-CHAT is a bad screening tool — it just means that if you apply it too early, and if you use it only once, you’re going to miss some cases of autism. Previous criticisms of the M-CHAT have reported that if you apply the test at about 18 months, the sensitivity is below 40 percent, meaning the test misses most children with autism at that age. For instance, the M-CHAT tends to be best at picking up children with the most prominent autism traits, and also those who have intellectual disability without autism So it might detect just the cases of autism that co-occur with intellectual disability. I hope that all of us who have been working in this field would put our heads together for the future of early autism identification and come up with something that is completely novel. If we test a screening instrument in a prospective study, we can see who later received a diagnosis and who did not, which might show that the screening instrument has a lot of false negatives in the long term. [meta-analysis](https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2022.5975) published in February in JAMA Pediatrics suggests that the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) can accurately identify children with autism and those without the condition.

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Image courtesy of "Drexel Now"

Latest National Autism Indicators Report Explores Autistic ... (Drexel Now)

In the latest edition of the National Autism Indicators Report series, researchers at Drexel University's A.J. Drexel Autism Institute explore how autistic ...

ATRP acknowledges and respects the choice of individuals on the autism spectrum to be referred to in their preferred terminology. This report is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Drexel Autism Institute](https://drexel.edu/autisminstitute/) explore how autistic individuals use Medicaid and how their service use changes across the lifespan – from infants to older adults – using data from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) from 2008-2016. [University Marketing and Communications](https://drexel.edu/ucomm/). The user-friendly series will deliver statistics about policy-relevant issues pertinent to the lives of autistic people and those with other developmental disabilities. There is a dearth of publications that focus on how autistic people use Medicaid and the services it covers for children, youth and adults on the autism spectrum, despite the many publications explaining how public insurance works. Autistic people often use Medicaid waivers designed for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in general. Age is an important factor in both use of Medicaid and what services are available. Autistic Medicaid beneficiaries who are Black, Hispanic or Asian are more likely to have conditions like diabetes or obesity. But autistic people must meet eligibility criteria in their state to receive Medicaid benefits and are not always automatically eligible for Medicaid. Services in mid-to-late life might focus on supports for community living (employment, life skills) or in-home care or self-care. Almost 70% of the enrollees were children.”

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