Pregnant women with high levels of DDT in their blood are more likely to have children who develop autism, according to NIEHS grantees.

Autism can be spotted in babies as young as four months old simply by monitoring their response to games such as peek-a-boo or incy-wincy spider, a new study suggests.

Giving children with autism a healthier mix of gut bacteria as a way to improve behavioral symptoms continued to work even two years after treatment ended. The finding may solidify the connection between tummy troubles and autism, and provide more evidence that the gut microbiome — the collection of bacteria and other microbes that live in the intestines — can influence behavior.

Like thousands of French children whose parents believe they have autism, Rachel’s six-year-old son had been placed by the state in a psychiatric hospital day unit. The team there, of the school of post-Freudian psychoanalysis, did not give a clear-cut diagnosis.

Of all the challenges that come with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the social difficulties are among the most devastating. Currently, there is no treatment for this primary symptom of ASD. New research at the University at Buffalo reveals the first evidence that it may be possible to use a single compound to alleviate the behavioral symptoms by targeting sets of genes involved in the disease.

Tennessee authorities have arrested a father for allegedly killing his 5-year-old son, who had autism and was non-verbal. The boy was reported missing earlier this week.

Dogs cannot get ‘autism’, the British Veterinary Association has warned, after the ‘anti-vaccine’ movement spread to pets.

A new CDC autism report finds that rates of autism are rising among U.S. children. Given the fraught history of the (consistently debunked) allegations that vaccines are tied to autism spectrum disorders, there may be an impulse in certain corners to bring up vaccinations as a potential root for this rise in diagnoses. The scientific consensus still resoundingly rejects that argument.

One in 59 US children has autism, according to a new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The new estimate is a prevalence rate of 1.7%, up from one in every 68 children (1.5%) in the 2016 report, which was based on data from 2012. The new figure was derived from 2014 estimates for 8-year-olds diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder in 11 communities across the nation.

That was the ruling by the editors of the authoritative Diagnostic and Statistical Manual in 2013, but it remains controversial

A Duke study of an iPhone app to screen young children for signs of autism has found that the app is easy to use, welcomed by caregivers and good at producing reliable scientific data. The study, described June 1 in an open access journal npj Digital Medicine, points the way to broader, easier access to screening for autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. The app first administers caregiver consent forms and survey questions and then uses the phone’s ‘selfie’ camera...

One year after researchers published their work on a physiological test for autism, a follow-up study confirms its exceptional success in assessing whether a child is on the autism spectrum. A physiological test that supports a clinician’s diagnostic process has the potential to lower the age at which children are diagnosed, leading to earlier treatment. Results of the study, which uses an algorithm to predict if a child has autism spectrum disorder (ASD) based on metabolites in a blood sample, published online today, appear in the June edition of Bioengineering & Translational Medicine.

Machine learning network offers personalized estimates of children’s behavior.

Children with autism have difficulty reading social cues and discerning other people’s emotions. Studies have shown that using Google Glass improves their ability to read facial expressions, making it an ideal tool in places such as China that have few therapists available.

One year after researchers published their work on a physiological test for autism, a follow-up study confirms its exceptional success in assessing whether a child is on the autism spectrum. A physiological test that supports a clinician’s diagnostic process has the potential to lower the age at which children are diagnosed, leading to earlier treatment. Results of the study, which uses an algorithm to predict if a child has autism spectrum disorder (ASD) based on metabolites in a blood sample, published online today, appear in the June edition of Bioengineering & Translational Medicine.

PETA have released online advertisements using two discredited studies to link autism to dairy consumption. Unusually for PETA, the ad admits to a certain element of doubt. “More research is needed, but scientific studies have shown that many autistic kids improve dramatically when put on a diet free of dairy foods”.

Researchers suggest autism stems from a reduced ability to make predictions, leading to anxiety.

More dentists are learning to meet the delicate challenge of caring for children with autism.

Eleanor Tucker: Researchers believe robots hold the key to early diagnosis, as well as teaching social skills. What can they do that humans can’t?

This weekend autistic people took over #AutismSpeaks10, the Twitter hashtag created by the large advocacy organization to celebrate its 10-year anniversary.

Molecular biologist John Rodakis calls for more research into the brain-gut connection after his son’s autism improved while taking antibiotics.

Autism Awareness Day? How about Autism Is Here, So Get Used To It Because It’s Not Going Anywhere Day?

At Adam Beck Junior Public School in Scarborough, kids are learning more about their fellow student Reid and how he deals with autism every day with the help of his best friend Abel.

Via Google Books: Autism and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders provides clinicians with up-to-date information on the impact these advances have on the standard of care in the range of disorders commonly encountered by both primary and subspecialist physicians. The authors,...

Pete Etchells and Chris Chambers: An autism researcher and an Oxford professor have exposed what appears to be a substantial case of academic malpractice, highlighting the vital role of peer review and the dangers faced by whistle-blowers

The principal has been suspended amid a full investigation.

April is the month for autism awareness campaigns, but a local group is making April autism understanding month instead.

I dread April, which has been designated as Autism Awareness Month. As mom to three young women with autism – ages 20, 18 and 14 – I eat, sleep and live autism every day.

Lydia Brown was born in Suzhou, China. As a one-year-old, she was adopted and brought to live in Melrose, Massachusetts, where the population is more than 90 percent white.

In honor of World Autism Awareness Day, Thursday, I had the privilege to attend and speak at an event held at the United Nations in New York City, where the theme was “Autism, The Employment Advantage.” This theme resonates with me on two levels. First, as a parent. I am the proud mom of Shawn, now 19, diagnosed with autism when he was four years old. Secondly, as a proud Read more »

What it's like to date when you're an autistic queer woman.

Some schools are wasting no time at reporting pupils, even very young pupils, to police and filing criminal complaints for classroom infractions. Those pupils reported are overwhelmingly of color, an investigation has found.

As part of human diversity, autistic persons should be embraced, celebrated and respected. However, discrimination against autistic children and adults is more the rule rather than the exception. -Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

Even though he apologized for comparing it to the Holocaust, Robert Kennedy Jr. retains a bizarre view of autism.

Most children don't get diagnosed with autism until they start school, a study finds, though the signs may be visible much earlier. Earlier diagnosis means more time to get therapy.