February 12, 2010
MU Thompson Center Extends Recruiting in Landmark Autism Research Project

By Toni Lapp
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Anyone who has a child with autism has at least a passing interest in research of the disorder, so I assume we are all now familiar with the 1998 study published in The Lancet medical journal by British researcher Andrew Wakefield. His work purportedly linked the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine — or MMRV — to autism and bowel disorders.

The Lancet now says it was remiss in publishing the study, and many of the co-authors have withdrawn their names from it in wake of criticism that Wakefield had a conflict of interest; he enrolled kids attending a birthday party for the study (not exactly a randomly selected population researchers would strive for); and the parents of some of the 12 autistic children in the study were recruited by a lawyer suing vaccine manufacturers.

So where does that leave those of us who yearn for clear answers in solving the puzzle of autism?

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January 14, 2010
Border Challenge for Autism

April 14, 2010
6:00 pmto9:30 pm

APRIL 14. Show your support for your favorite school’s autism program. Fundraiser for Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (K-CART) and MU Thompson Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders. From 6 – 9:30 p.m. at Boulevard Brewery, 2501 Southwest Blvd., Kansas City. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased here.

Autism Asperger Publishing Co.

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ASK AN AUTISM SPECTRUM SPECIALIST

The Summer Break: A Catch-22?

By Jeanne Holverstott, M.S.

Question: It seems like summer can be full of pitfalls for my son with Asperger’s — the structure has gone away, and he’s no longer in contact with classmates. He is content to play on the computer all day, but seems to get moody more easily. Should we treat summer vacation as a long break from school-year stress, or what?  

Answer: Summer vacation presents a contradiction: Children with autism spectrum disorders thrive on structure, routine, consistency. Summer vacation throws these principles of ASD parenting and behavior management in flux.

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DEVELOPING TALENTS

Intervene, Intervene, Intervene

By Kate Duffy

A while back, Toni, the SpectrumConnection editor, asked me to write about how far parents should go to help their teens on the spectrum land a job. Since then, several of our Hot Topics parents have shared their kids’ job search stories with me, and I realized there was no easy answer to her question. For the most part, though, their stories revolved around the kids’ inability to accurately read situations, to remember instructions and to multitask to make a deadline. Looking at that list, it sounds like business as usual on the job for most of us — which is why it is so very important that our kids start learning about the world of work as soon as they can.

That’s why the short answer to Toni’s question is this: do what you need to do.

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