Purpose: Major depressive disorder (MDD) disproportionately affects those living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and is associated with significant impairment and treatment recidivism. Methods: We studied the use of accelerated theta burst stimulation (ATBS) for the treatment of refractory MDD in ASD (3 treatments daily x 10 days). This…

Cognitive interventions that involve executive functions (EF)-demanding activities are effective in changing task-related brain activity in children from homes with low socioeconomic status (SES). However, less is known about the efficiency of EF-based interventions in modifying segregation and integration properties of the functional neural…

Handwriting was a therapeutic intervention with an adolescent victim of a serious electrical accident that occurred in 1972. It was initiated two months after the accident as one aspect of educational therapy. The handwriting tasks involved copying numbers, printing letters, copying shapes, practicing cursive letters, writing sentences, and…

Chronic poverty and stressful life circumstances result in poor school performance and behaviors. Research demonstrates that these behaviors are not the result of student inadequacies and lack of proper discipline, but are rather of neurological adaptations to chronic poverty and toxic stress. These outcomes are driven by the body's attempt to…

Dysregulation of glutamate neurotransmission plays a critical role in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) pathophysiology and is a primary target for core deficit research treatment trials. The mechanism of action of ketamine has striking overlap with the theory of ASD as a disorder of synaptic communication and neuronal networks. This two-dose,…

This article describes one family's experience in the Young Mother's Clinic (YMC), a medical clinic providing multidisciplinary care to adolescent mothers and their children. The authors highlight the neurodevelopmental changes that occur in the later adolescent period and explore related clinical implications for professionals working with these…

After well over a century of research about dyslexia, there is still no consensus about how it differs from other decoding difficulties, how it is identified, and its causes. Nevertheless, there is an abundance of research about dyslexia, mostly conducted outside of education, and much of it focused on the brain. This attention to the brain and…

Mother and child wellbeing are intimately connected during pregnancy and the first 12 months of the infant's life. The fetus and child directly experience the mother's life and are shaped by it. A mother's environmental experiences, physical health, and psychological distress affect her interactions with her infant, which in turn have…

Students with Down syndrome (DS) receive school-based physical therapy (SBPT), however little data exists regarding services and outcomes. Using a prospective observational cohort study our aim was to explore SBPT activities and interventions, and students' goal achievement of 46 students with DS, tracked by 17 physical therapists (PTs). PTs…

Each year, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) releases a list of scientific advances that represent significant progress in the field. The "2018 Summary of Advances" provides short, plain language summaries of the top research breakthroughs selected by the IACC from a pool of research articles nominated by the members.…

The Common Core State Standards articulate expectations for student participation in mathematical reasoning, sense making, and discussion. Yet little to no research explores the participation of students with autism in these practices. Drawing on neurodiversity and situated sociocultural theory, this article offers a case study of the mathematics…

This study compared the effectiveness of Orton Gillingham (OG) tutoring and National Institute for Learning Development Educational Therapy (NILD). A randomized controlled trial using 27 participants determined whether academic and cognitive outcomes differed between the groups over a 9-month period. Participants had designated learning…

Over 70 years ago Dr. Karel Bobath and his wife Bertha Bobath began to craft the therapeutic intervention now known as neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT). This edition of Reviews, Tools, and Resources will highlight a historical review of research studies that have been completed, current websites, books, and blogs focusing on NDT.

Social-cognitive and emotional factors as well as behavior problems contribute to the social difficulties experienced by many students with or at high risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBDs). The way that teachers and peers treat and respond to these students can either mitigate or exacerbate their challenges in establishing and…

Social-cognitive and emotional factors as well as behavior problems contribute to the social difficulties experienced by many students with or at high risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). The way that teachers and peers treat and respond to these students can either mitigate or exacerbate their challenges in establishing and…