Through contributions from top leaders in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), "Children and Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder" examines the ASD research literature, discusses procedural implications, and makes recommendations for future practice and inquiry. It combines the most recent developments in established practices with newer and…

This article provides an introduction to the use of event-related potential (ERP) approaches to study language processes. First, a brief history of the emergence of this technology is presented, followed by definitions, a theoretical overview, and a practical guide to conducting ERP studies. Examples of language studies that use this technique are…

This article criticizes the term "comorbidity" used to describe the overlap of developmental syndromes or disorders. Data from 179 school-age children are evaluated for criteria of seven disorders. Since fully 50 percent of the sample met the criteria for at least two diagnoses, the premise that these disorders are discrete categories on…

Many researchers and clinicians are diagnosing depressed children according to criteria resembling those used to diagnose depressed adults. To investigate cognitive correlates of depression in children two studies were conducted. In the first study 37 children in grades 5-7 were given a booklet containing the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI)…

Comparison of children (n=6) with either autism or Asperger syndrome (AS) and children (n=9) with neither condition found overall postural instability was significantly reduced in autistic children compared with both AS and normal children and confirms the existence of a visuo-postural detuning in autistic children. Results suggest a…

This review focuses on a classification of the concept of obesity, childhood growth patterns, current diagnostic procedures, physiological and psychological implications, etiology, environmental influences, and the special needs of the obese child. Obesity is viewed as a medical condition requiring medical and educational interventions. (Author/RH)

This population study of eight California birth cohorts (1987-1994) examined the degree to which improvements in detection and changes in diagnosis contribute to the observed increase in autism prevalence from 5.8 to 14.9 per 10,000. A decreasing prevalence of mental retardation without autism suggests that improvements in detection and changes in…

This study of 136 children (aged 2 to 10 years) found that children referred for medical evaluation of sexual abuse will use sexually explicit behavior to demonstrate what has happened to them with nonanatomical dolls as frequently as when they are interviewed with anatomically detailed ones. (Author/DB)

Morphometric analysis of magnetic resonance imaging scans revealed that, compared to nondisabled controls, the seven children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder had a smaller corpus callosum. Results suggest that subtle differences may exist in the brains of these children and that deviations in normal corticogenesis may underlie the…

Measures of transient evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE) reproducibility were obtained for 506 ears of 260 children and young adults. Findings suggest that TEOAEs provide useful information in routine clinical practice and may be employed to screen for the presence of hearing loss in children and young adults. (DB)

This study found that motor impairment levels of 12 Asperger syndrome children and 9 high functioning autistic children (ages 7-17) did not differ. Intelligence level was negatively correlated with motor impairment. Fifty percent of Asperger children and 67% of children with autism showed a clinically significant level of motor impairment.…

Autism research and treatment conducted by the Institute of Defectology of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences in the Soviet Union is described. Four variants of early childhood autism are identified, differing in the degree of the manifestations. The multiple causation theory is supported, and combination of drug therapy and psychoeducational…

This study compared 23 children with high-functioning autism with 12 children with Asperger syndrome using DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. Findings indicated few group differences in current functioning but many early history differences. The Asperger syndrome group generally demonstrated less severe early symptoms, a milder developmental course, and…

Comparison of data on all children referred for suspected autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the Australian Capital Territory in 1997 and 1989 found a 200% increase in ASD diagnoses in 1997 despite a population decrease; a wider age range in 1997; a 26% increase in milder cases; and a decrease in the ratio of boys to girls. (Contains references.)…

This study evaluated an experimental articulation testing instrument for differentiating child speakers (N=21, ages 5:0 to 6:6) of African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) with atypical and typical phonologies. Significant group differences were observed, suggesting that the measure can differentiate typical and atypical development in this…