Atypical sleep architecture and the autism phenotype.
Abstract
A growing body of evidence indicates that people with autism frequently experience sleep disorders and exhibit atypical sleep architecture. In order to establish whether sleep disorders truly belong to the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) phenotype, we conducted a subjective and objective study of sleep in a group of high-functioning adults with ASD but without sleep complaints, psychiatric disorders or neurological comorbidity. We compared the subjective data of 27 ASD participants with those of 78 healthy controls matched for chronological age and gender. Subjective measures of sleep in the clinical group were compatible with insomnia and/or a tolerable phase advance of the sleep-wake cycle. Subjective data were confirmed by objective laboratory sleep recordings in a subset of 16 patients and 16 controls. Persons with autism presented with a longer sleep latency (P < 0.04), more frequent nocturnal awakenings (P < 0.03), lower sleep efficiency (P < 0.03), increased duration of stage 1 sleep (P < 0.02), decreased non-REM sleep (stages 2 + 3 + 4, P < 0.04) and slow-wave sleep (stages 3 + 4, P < 0.05), fewer stage 2 EEG sleep spindles (P < 0.004), and a lower number of rapid eye movements during REM sleep (P < 0.006) than did control participants. On clinical scales, the scores of persons with ASD on the Beck Depression Inventory were similar to those of persons without, but their trait anxiety scores on the Spielberger Anxiety Scale were higher (P < 0.02). The state anxiety scores of the Spielberger scale and cortisol levels were the same in the two groups. Objective total sleep time correlated negatively with the Social (-0.52, P < 0.05) and Communication (-0.54, P < 0.02) scales of the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised. The sleep of clinical subgroups (10 with high-functioning autism, six with Asperger syndrome) did not differ, except for the presence of fewer EEG sleep spindles in the Asperger syndrome subgroup (P < 0.05). In conclusion, these findings indicate that atypicalities of sleep constitute a salient feature of the adult ASD phenotype and this should be further investigated in younger patients. Moreover, the results are consistent with an atypical organization of neural networks subserving the macro- and microstructure of sleep in ASD. We are furthering this research with quantified analysis of sleep EEG.
Source:Â http://www.citeulike.org/group/12475/article/172627
An investigation into sleep characteristics of children with autism and Asperger’s Disorder.
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Abstract
The aim of the study was to investigate the specificity of sleep problems in children with autism and further explore the currently unclear association between sleep problems and daytime behaviour. The Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) group consisted of 31 children with autism and 7 children with Asperger’s Disorder ranging in age from 44 to 152 months. The control group consisted of 36 children ranging in age from 63 to 171 months. The children were matched on age and gender, and group-matched on IQ level. A sleep diary was completed by parents over a 2-week period, in addition to several behaviour questionnaires. Results showed that children in the PDD group exhibited qualitatively and quantitatively different sleep patterns to nonautistic control children. The findings were discussed in light of current literature concerning circadian rhythm dysfunction, social difficulties, and abnormal melatonin levels in children with autism.
Source: http://www.citeulike.org/group/12475/article/7191164
 
The [American Psychological Association’s] Your Mind, Your Body “Mental Health Month†Blog Party represents the aim of APA’s bloggers to bring mental health writing to the web.
We love that the American Psychological Association (APA) has decided to designate today as some sort of “blog party†to increase mental health awareness, but their press release and related marketing materials on this “blog party†make it pretty clear they don’t have a clue. I’ve never seen bloggers “organized†through a press release before.
First of all, it kind of sounds like the APA doesn’t believe there’s any mental health writing on the web. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth… Mental health writing has been on the web for years! Some of the best writing has been in independent blogs, like Furious Seasons (which has sadly gone AWOL), The Last Psychiatrist, The Carlat Psychiatry Blog, Dr. Deb, and The Trouble with Spikol. You can’t “bring†something “to the web†which has already been around for years and years.
Read in Full:Â http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2010/05/18/blogging-for-mental-health-and-psychology-2010/
Â
The [American Psychological Association’s] Your Mind, Your Body “Mental Health Month†Blog Party represents the aim of APA’s bloggers to bring mental health writing to the web.
We love that the American Psychological Association (APA) has decided to designate today as some sort of “blog party†to increase mental health awareness, but their press release and related marketing materials on this “blog party†make it pretty clear they don’t have a clue. I’ve never seen bloggers “organized†through a press release before.
First of all, it kind of sounds like the APA doesn’t believe there’s any mental health writing on the web. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth… Mental health writing has been on the web for years! Some of the best writing has been in independent blogs, like Furious Seasons (which has sadly gone AWOL), The Last Psychiatrist, The Carlat Psychiatry Blog, Dr. Deb, and The Trouble with Spikol. You can’t “bring†something “to the web†which has already been around for years and years.
Read in Full:Â http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2010/05/18/blogging-for-mental-health-and-psychology-2010/
 
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is awarding three new Treatment and Services Adaptation (TSA) Center grants for a total of $5.4 million over three years. These new grants are part of SAMHSA’s National Child Traumatic Stress Initiative.
The TSA Centers provide expertise on treatment approaches and service system development for children who experience traumatic events such as interpersonal violence, natural disasters, or acts of terrorism.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Initiative also includes the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). The network supports the delivery of effective services, developed by the TSAs for children and adolescents exposed to a wide array of traumatic events.
“When children endure traumatic experiences we have the responsibility to respond to their needs with the best care available,” said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde, J.D. “By investing resources in improving the services offered we can replace a lifetime of despair and disability with resiliency and hope.”
Three TSA programs have been awarded funding over the next three years. The actual award amounts may vary, depending on the availability of funds and the progress achieved by the awardees. The funds are administered by SAMHSA’s Center for Mental Health Services.
The three grant recipients are:
Northwestern University Medical School, Evanston, Ill. – $599,998
Children’s Hospital, San Diego, Calif. – $600,000
Yale Child Study Center, New Haven, Conn. – $599,999
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The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is awarding three new Treatment and Services Adaptation (TSA) Center grants for a total of $5.4 million over three years. These new grants are part of SAMHSA’s National Child Traumatic Stress Initiative.
The TSA Centers provide expertise on treatment approaches and service system development for children who experience traumatic events such as interpersonal violence, natural disasters, or acts of terrorism.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Initiative also includes the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). The network supports the delivery of effective services, developed by the TSAs for children and adolescents exposed to a wide array of traumatic events.
“When children endure traumatic experiences we have the responsibility to respond to their needs with the best care available,” said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde, J.D. “By investing resources in improving the services offered we can replace a lifetime of despair and disability with resiliency and hope.”
Three TSA programs have been awarded funding over the next three years. The actual award amounts may vary, depending on the availability of funds and the progress achieved by the awardees. The funds are administered by SAMHSA’s Center for Mental Health Services.
The three grant recipients are:
Northwestern University Medical School, Evanston, Ill. – $599,998
Children’s Hospital, San Diego, Calif. – $600,000
Yale Child Study Center, New Haven, Conn. – $599,999
 
Article Date: 18 May 2010 – 4:00 PDT
More than one-third of teenagers with treatment-resistant depression – many of whom had been depressed for more than two years – became symptom-free six months after switching their medication or combining a medicine switch with cognitive behavioral therapy during a multicenter study led by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers.
The study findings, available online and in a future edition of the American Journal of Psychiatry, found that teenagers who showed an improvement of symptoms after just three months into their new regimen were much more likely to show lasting beneficial effects.
“This study provides hope for parents and teenagers that persistence in seeking treatment will lead to recovery in some patients, especially if early treatment is aggressive,” said Dr. Graham Emslie, professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at UT Southwestern and a principal investigator of the study. “Even after six months of treatment, however, about two-third of teenagers were still suffering from at least some symptoms of depression.”
The 334 study participants ranged from 12 to 18 years of age. They exhibited traits of moderate to severe major depressive disorder, including thoughts of suicide. Historically, these types of patients have the worst treatment outcomes.
In February 2008, Dr. Emslie and colleagues first published work about these teenagers, who had failed to respond to a class of antidepressant medications known as SSRIs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. SSRIs, are the most common drug treatment for depression, although about 40 percent of teenagers on the drugs don’t respond to the first treatment.
After three months, nearly 55 percent of the teens in Dr. Emslie’s study improved when they both switched to a different antidepressant and participated in cognitive behavioral therapy, which examines thinking patterns to modify behavior. That study also found that after three months, about 41 percent of participants showed improvement after just switching to either a different SSRI or to venlafaxine, a non-SSRI type of depression medication.
Dr. Emslie and colleagues have now examined the six-month data from that study, and found that nearly 39 percent of participants who completed six months of treatment no longer had symptoms of depression. Those participants were more likely to have had lower levels of depression, hopelessness and anxiety at the beginning of the study.
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/189064.php
Â
Article Date: 18 May 2010 – 4:00 PDT
More than one-third of teenagers with treatment-resistant depression – many of whom had been depressed for more than two years – became symptom-free six months after switching their medication or combining a medicine switch with cognitive behavioral therapy during a multicenter study led by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers.
The study findings, available online and in a future edition of the American Journal of Psychiatry, found that teenagers who showed an improvement of symptoms after just three months into their new regimen were much more likely to show lasting beneficial effects.
“This study provides hope for parents and teenagers that persistence in seeking treatment will lead to recovery in some patients, especially if early treatment is aggressive,” said Dr. Graham Emslie, professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at UT Southwestern and a principal investigator of the study. “Even after six months of treatment, however, about two-third of teenagers were still suffering from at least some symptoms of depression.”
The 334 study participants ranged from 12 to 18 years of age. They exhibited traits of moderate to severe major depressive disorder, including thoughts of suicide. Historically, these types of patients have the worst treatment outcomes.
In February 2008, Dr. Emslie and colleagues first published work about these teenagers, who had failed to respond to a class of antidepressant medications known as SSRIs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. SSRIs, are the most common drug treatment for depression, although about 40 percent of teenagers on the drugs don’t respond to the first treatment.
After three months, nearly 55 percent of the teens in Dr. Emslie’s study improved when they both switched to a different antidepressant and participated in cognitive behavioral therapy, which examines thinking patterns to modify behavior. That study also found that after three months, about 41 percent of participants showed improvement after just switching to either a different SSRI or to venlafaxine, a non-SSRI type of depression medication.
Dr. Emslie and colleagues have now examined the six-month data from that study, and found that nearly 39 percent of participants who completed six months of treatment no longer had symptoms of depression. Those participants were more likely to have had lower levels of depression, hopelessness and anxiety at the beginning of the study.
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/189064.php
 
Daniel Bedingfield, ADHD
Margaret Harris says there are ways to cope with staff who have ADHD
May 16, 2010 12:00 AM | By Margaret Harris
Parents and teachers run ragged by children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) should spare a thought for the adults suffering from the disorder.
It was long assumed that children diagnosed with ADHD would eventually grow out of the problem – usually at puberty – but this is not always the case.
Time management, prioritising, screening out distractions or simply getting started on a lengthy to-do list can be extremely difficult tasks for people with ADHD.
What’s more, many adults with the disorder were never diagnosed, so have no explanation for their behaviour.
Occupational therapist Andi Bengis says that many adults often diagnose themselves when their own children are found to have the problem.
This was definitely the case with Saul Hirsch (not his real name).
He says he found himself mentally ticking off every single thing on the list of classic symptoms of ADHD.
A look at his school career should have alerted his teachers that he had ADHD. Hirsch says he was not a team player and was often in trouble for being disruptive and distracting his classmates.
Today he is self-employed because he knows that he would never be able to cope in the confines of the corporate environment.
Bengis says that adults with ADHD are best suited to companies or industries that are “off the wall”, such as advertising.
Companies that don’t have a corporate mentality – and which don’t have a dress code – will be the most accommodating, Bengis says.
In fact, many of the characteristics of ADHD are highly sought after in today’s working world. For example, the ability to think laterally can be a huge advantage.
Bengis says that those with ADHD who find themselves in an “unfriendly” environment will invariably find themselves in trouble for being late, missing deadlines, missing meetings and “just not getting things done”.
But ADHD does not have to be debilitating.
Lawrence Wordon, the MD of recruitment group Kelly, says: “A co-operative approach between those with ADHD and their employer is key to a successful working relationship.
“Managers, in particular, can be proactive by forwarding regular memos, with widely spaced paragraphs, to employees in an effort to summarise spoken instructions,” Wordon says.
“The granting of regular breaks is also an effective tool to combat the effects of ADHD in the workplace.”
He also has advice for those with ADHD. “They can also take several measured steps to counter the challenges of their condition, for example, the use of check lists and a daily planner.”
Other methods include asking colleagues to send information in writing for tracking purposes; working earlier or later in the day when the environment should be calmer; breaking work up into smaller, more manageable chunks; avoiding over-scheduling and arranging for uninterrupted blocks of time during the day where phones are diverted straight to voice mail.
Dr Dora Wynchank, a Johannesburg psychiatrist, says: “Adults with ADHD should seek treatment and counselling as soon as the first signs of ADHD are recognised. Treatment should be an individualised collaboration between the treating psychiatrist and the particular patient; identifying his/her specific needs and lifestyle. Flexible dosing of medication, with the patient in charge, can ensure sufferers lead a successful work life.”
Bengis agrees that, as with children, medication can help.
Source:Â http://www.timeslive.co.za/business/careers/article449801.ece/Attention-deficit-a-boon-for-bosses
Â
Daniel Bedingfield, ADHD
Margaret Harris says there are ways to cope with staff who have ADHD
May 16, 2010 12:00 AM | By Margaret Harris
Parents and teachers run ragged by children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) should spare a thought for the adults suffering from the disorder.
It was long assumed that children diagnosed with ADHD would eventually grow out of the problem – usually at puberty – but this is not always the case.
Time management, prioritising, screening out distractions or simply getting started on a lengthy to-do list can be extremely difficult tasks for people with ADHD.
What’s more, many adults with the disorder were never diagnosed, so have no explanation for their behaviour.
Occupational therapist Andi Bengis says that many adults often diagnose themselves when their own children are found to have the problem.
This was definitely the case with Saul Hirsch (not his real name).
He says he found himself mentally ticking off every single thing on the list of classic symptoms of ADHD.
A look at his school career should have alerted his teachers that he had ADHD. Hirsch says he was not a team player and was often in trouble for being disruptive and distracting his classmates.
Today he is self-employed because he knows that he would never be able to cope in the confines of the corporate environment.
Bengis says that adults with ADHD are best suited to companies or industries that are “off the wall”, such as advertising.
Companies that don’t have a corporate mentality – and which don’t have a dress code – will be the most accommodating, Bengis says.
In fact, many of the characteristics of ADHD are highly sought after in today’s working world. For example, the ability to think laterally can be a huge advantage.
Bengis says that those with ADHD who find themselves in an “unfriendly” environment will invariably find themselves in trouble for being late, missing deadlines, missing meetings and “just not getting things done”.
But ADHD does not have to be debilitating.
Lawrence Wordon, the MD of recruitment group Kelly, says: “A co-operative approach between those with ADHD and their employer is key to a successful working relationship.
“Managers, in particular, can be proactive by forwarding regular memos, with widely spaced paragraphs, to employees in an effort to summarise spoken instructions,” Wordon says.
“The granting of regular breaks is also an effective tool to combat the effects of ADHD in the workplace.”
He also has advice for those with ADHD. “They can also take several measured steps to counter the challenges of their condition, for example, the use of check lists and a daily planner.”
Other methods include asking colleagues to send information in writing for tracking purposes; working earlier or later in the day when the environment should be calmer; breaking work up into smaller, more manageable chunks; avoiding over-scheduling and arranging for uninterrupted blocks of time during the day where phones are diverted straight to voice mail.
Dr Dora Wynchank, a Johannesburg psychiatrist, says: “Adults with ADHD should seek treatment and counselling as soon as the first signs of ADHD are recognised. Treatment should be an individualised collaboration between the treating psychiatrist and the particular patient; identifying his/her specific needs and lifestyle. Flexible dosing of medication, with the patient in charge, can ensure sufferers lead a successful work life.”
Bengis agrees that, as with children, medication can help.
Source:Â http://www.timeslive.co.za/business/careers/article449801.ece/Attention-deficit-a-boon-for-bosses
 
In a new study, researchers in Sweden show that the dopamine system in healthy, highly creative people is similar in some respects to that seen in people with schizophrenia. (Credit: iStockphoto/Evgeny Terentev)
ScienceDaily (May 18, 2010) — New research shows a possible explanation for the link between mental health and creativity. By studying receptors in the brain, researchers at Karolinska Institutet have managed to show that the dopamine system in healthy, highly creative people is similar in some respects to that seen in people with schizophrenia.
High creative skills have been shown to be somewhat more common in people who have mental illness in the family. Creativity is also linked to a slightly higher risk of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Certain psychological traits, such as the ability to make unusual pr bizarre associations are also shared by schizophrenics and healthy, highly creative people. And now the correlation between creativity and mental health has scientific backing.
“We have studied the brain and the dopamine D2 receptors, and have shown that the dopamine system of healthy, highly creative people is similar to that found in people with schizophrenia,” says associate professor Fredrik Ullén from Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, co-author of the study that appears in the journal PLoS ONE.
Just which brain mechanisms are responsible for this correlation is still something of a mystery, but Dr Ullén conjectures that the function of systems in the brain that use dopamine is significant; for example, studies have shown that dopamine receptor genes are linked to ability for divergent thought. Dr Ullén’s study measured the creativity of healthy individuals using divergent psychological tests, in which the task was to find many different solutions to a problem.
“The study shows that highly creative people who did well on the divergent tests had a lower density of D2 receptors in the thalamus than less creative people,” says Dr Ullén. “Schizophrenics are also known to have low D2 density in this part of the brain, suggesting a cause of the link between mental illness and creativity.”
The thalamus serves as a kind of relay centre, filtering information before it reaches areas of the cortex, which is responsible, amongst other things, for cognition and reasoning.
“Fewer D2 receptors in the thalamus probably means a lower degree of signal filtering, and thus a higher flow of information from the thalamus,” says Dr Ullén, and explains that this could a possible mechanism behind the ability of healthy highly creative people to see numerous uncommon connections in a problem-solving situation and the bizarre associations found in the mentally ill.
“Thinking outside the box might be facilitated by having a somewhat less intact box,” says Dr Ullén about his new findings.
Journal Reference:
- Örjan de Manzano, Simon Cervenka, Anke Karabanov, Lars Farde, Fredrik Ullén, Aldo Rustichini. Thinking Outside a Less Intact Box: Thalamic Dopamine D2 Receptor Densities Are Negatively Related to Psychometric Creativity in Healthy Individuals. PLoS ONE, 2010; 5 (5): e10670 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0010670
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100518064610.htm