Article Date: 12 Aug 2011 – 1:00 PDT

 
Short-stay inpatient hospitalizations for children and adolescents with a psychiatric diagnosis increased significantly over a 12-year period (1996 to 2007) and decreased for the elderly, according to a report in the early online edition in Archives of General Psychiatry by Joseph C. Blader, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Science at Stony Brook University School of Medicine. The article describing the research, “Acute Inpatient Care for Psychiatric Disorders in the United States, 1996 Through 1997,” will also appear in the journal’s December 2011 print edition.

“The study is based on the annual National Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS), a program of the Center for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics,” said Dr. Blader. “The survey included all non-Federal general and children’s hospitals, as well as other care facilities with a mean length of stay of less than 30 days. We used demographic, clinical and payment data from NHDS on a probability sample of discharges from short-stay facilities. Patients included in the study had a primary psychiatric diagnosis and were grouped as children (ages 5 to 13 years), adolescents (ages 14 to 19 years), adults (ages 20 to 64 years) or elderly individuals (ages 65 years and older). Payers were classified as private, government or other (self-pay, no charge and other payment),” added Dr. Blader, summarizing the study methodology.

Read in Full:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/232642.php

By Lara Gould

Last updated at 8:55 AM on 15th August 2011

Just after 8am on a spring morning in April, television presenter Gail Porter crouched under a tree on London’s Hampstead Heath and sent a text message to her boyfriend that read: ‘I can’t carry on. I feel suicidal.’

Hours later, the former pin-up girl – whose image was once famously projected on to the side of the House of  Commons – was being bundled into the back of a police van and taken to a psychiatric unit where she would  be sectioned and forcibly held for nearly a month.

The 40-year-old star’s personal  troubles – which have included a battle with the eating disorder anorexia, post-natal depression, being diagnosed bipolar, an acrimonious divorce from her musician husband in 2004 and being left bald by the hair loss condition alopecia – have been well-documented.

But in a searingly honest interview, Gail, a single mother who rose to fame on Saturday-morning children’s television in the Nineties and who was at one time among the highest-paid women on television, today tells how she hit rock bottom four months ago.

It’s a fall from grace almost unimaginable when compared with the fame she once enjoyed.

After being taken to the Royal Free Hospital in North London, Gail’s mental welfare was deemed so unstable she was placed under a 28-day section order which forced her to remain as an in-patient at the Grove Clinic, the hospital’s psychiatric wing, alongside paranoid schizophrenics and violent patients on suicide watch.

Three months after her release, and talking about her ordeal for the first time, the star is still shaken and emotional. She says she has turned a corner in her recovery after leaving hospital and embarking on an intensive counselling programme at The Cabin, a private rehabilitation centre in northern Thailand, which she completed last weekend.

But despite her positivity, her darkest moments still haunt her as she recalls the heavily medicated weeks in hospital with nothing to pass the time except a single television shared between the unit’s 50 patients and cups of instant coffee.

‘The worst part about being sectioned was the lack of structure,’ says Gail. ‘There was no treatment programme – we were just locked in the unit and basically forgotten about.

‘When you are suffering from depression as badly as I was, you genuinely believe you will never come out of a place like that.

‘It felt as if I was in the film One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. I had been forced into this place with some very, very ill people and we were left to our own devices and to fend for ourselves.

‘I had no idea how long I had been in there because each day followed exactly the same pattern as the last.

‘In the morning I was woken at 7am. We would have cereal for breakfast in the common room then the nurses came round with our medication. I was given 5mg of diazepam in a little pot to swallow to keep me calm. I didn’t even know what it was but there was no point complaining because you had to take what you were prescribed.

‘That was followed at lunchtime by clorazepate, an anti-anxiety drug, and in the evening another 5mg of diazepam and 7.5mg of zopiclone  for insomnia.

‘It seemed to me that the nurses didn’t really know what to do with us so it was easier to give us lots of drugs so we were calm and quiet.

‘In three weeks I saw three doctors for ten minutes each. Each time all I was asked was, “How are you feeling?” I told them I felt depressed, they wrote it down and a week later another one came back.

‘There was no treatment programme and nothing to do. It meant patients just focused on their problems instead of getting better. My ex-husband came to visit me and said recently, “You got madder every day you were in there. You were dosed up to your eyes with nothing to do.”

‘I kept myself to myself but there were some very ill people in there. The woman in the room next to mine would get up at  3am every morning and flush the toilet in her room for three hours and talk into the cistern. She said it was her contact to God.

‘Two patients believed they were Jesus and on another occasion a male patient burst into the common room naked because he said he was better.

‘I was desperate to get out but because I had been sectioned it was illegal for me to leave the hospital. I honestly believed I would never leave.’

Read in Full:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2025741/Gail-Porter-sectioned-TV-presenter-gives-haunted-account-3-week-ordeal.html

The circumstances surrounding the death of Hansel Cunningham, 30, remain under investigation by Illinois State Police, and officials said the probe could take a year to complete.

Don Moss, a disability rights advocate who works with Evanston-based Rimland Services for Autistic Citizens, which operates the group home, questioned the use of force and the judgment of Des Plaines police officers and paramedics.

“This type of force was not needed, the action was not necessary. The restraint was not protocol. Apparently the police were aware it was a home for autistic adults. But perhaps the police weren’t framed or trained in less violent techniques.”

“Our position is that we followed everything according to our guidelines. I believe the Fire Department did, too, but that is part of the investigation,” Prandini said. “Hopefully, we will find some results that will show why this unfortunate situation happened. We sincerely want the family to know that the Police Department, the entire city, offers its condolences and that we feel terrible about this.”

“I really would like to know,” Prandini said “If they point to the direction of a Taser, let’s make a Taser change. If they point to the direction of training, let’s make a training change.”

Paramedics initially were called to the home to treat the caregiver.

Moss said Cunningham did not have a history of violence and was familiar with the caregiver, who had been working at the home for more than three years.

Lt. Lincoln Hampton, public information officer for the state police, said there is no timetable for the investigation and that it could take a year to complete.

A final report will be turned over to the state’s attorney’s office, which would determine if charges are to be filed.

Dr. John Ortinau, medical director of the Arlington Heights-based Northwest Community EMS system, said the paramedics involved would be interviewed within the next week.

Attempts to reach Cunningham’s family for comment were not successful. A Rimland spokeswoman said a funeral for Cunningham was held Tuesday.

bmccarthy@tribune.com

Police Watchdog To Probe Taser Man’s Death

JENNY SMITH

Last updated 14:29 18/08/2011

Plenty of opinion pieces have been published in recent years on the autistic spectrum condition known as Asperger’s syndrome.

It has been interesting to see the proliferation of an Asperger’s diagnosis of both adults and children throughout this decade, but it has raised serious questions for me when Asperger’s is confused with giftedness.

Diagnosis of any psychological, emotional or social condition is made on the basis of the behaviours of individuals and their reporting of their thoughts and feelings. When the same behaviours, thoughts and feelings can be attributed to more than one condition, it can be difficult to determine the cause.

When one significant condition is not well understood, the chances are that the diagnosis will be incomplete. The explanation that is not considered in the case of children and adults of high ability expressing concerns about their social engagement is that they may be gifted.

This is generally because being gifted and its attendant difficulties are not well understood within the medical or educational communities.

For centuries, writers and researchers have observed and recorded how very high ability, particularly in the cognitive domain, leads to asynchronous development in the emotional, social and physical domains.

Long before Dr Asperger identified behaviours related to an inability to relate to others and social difficulties, many gifted individuals had spoken of how their intellectual drive made it difficult to connect with the mundane aspects of life.

They found that connecting to people with whom there was little in common, or sharing ideas which were new, complicated and demanding in a way that others could follow was problematic and made communication awkward.

Gifted children can appear to have the same behaviours as those with Asperger’s. They have good language skills and great memories. They have areas of deep interest, and can have great imaginations so are often dreamy and out of tune with what’s around them or be so logical and straightforward in their thinking that imagination and pretence are a mystery to them.

Many gifted children fidget, since it can help keep the brain occupied and allow them to organise their thoughts more easily, while others may hum, sing or talk to themselves to achieve the same effect.

They need time to engage in the activities that they are most satisfied by. If there are other children who also enjoy those activities, they will play with them, but most often there are not.

Gifted children will often share, at length, their interests and ideas before recognising the lack of understanding others have in the topic, so seem to be talking at, rather than with, them. They are often difficult to manage when their needs clash with the expectations and needs of others. They are protective of their time and resist being organised into joining in with children or activities they don’t relate to.

Read in Full:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/5464232/Autistic-or-just-brilliant/

Seizures are a common co-existing condition with autism, as many as one in every four people with autism will develop seizures. While some children may have seizures when very young, they may develop or increase during puberty. It isn’t understood exactly why but it is thought to be at least partially due to changing hormones.

Some seizures are accompanied by convulsions and there is little doubt that your child is having a seizure. Many seizures, called subclinical seizures, go unnoticed because of the mild symptoms or the complete lack of symptoms. There are some behaviors which can signal seizure activity:

• *Changes in behaviors, such as increased aggression, self-injury or melt-downs
• *Slowing down or lack of forward progress in academic work as compared to previous years
• *Losing cognitive gains

A child having a subclinical seizure may seem to be staring or in a daze for a few minutes. The may look like he is daydreaming or seem like he is deliberately ignoring you. The seizure can be over within seconds and although he was unaware of what was going on around him during the seizure, he quickly has full awareness once the seizure has ended. This type of seizure  often goes unnoticed because parents see this behavior as a symptom of the autism rather than a seizure. An EEG may not pick up on seizure activity, unless your child is having a seizure at the time of the EEG. If your child is suspected of having seizures, his doctor may order an extended EEG, where he is monitored for 24 to 48 hours.

Studies have shown that vitamin B6 and magnesium supplements and dimethylglycine (DMG) can help to reduce seizures and according to the Autism Research Review International, these supplements should be tried. [Autism Research Review International, 2005, Vol. 19, No. 1, page 3]. Magnesium supplements have also been found to help reduce hypersensitive hearing. Because these supplements should be taken based on your child’s weight, you should speak to your doctor about the correct dosage.

Some seizures can also be your child’s reaction to severe pain. Because late-onset autism is sometimes associated with abdominal pain and GI problems, and children with autism may not be able to communicate their pain to you, it is beneficial to talk with a gastroenterologist to find out if there is any problems that can be corrected which may help your child.

If your child is found to be having seizures, he may be given anti-convulsant medications. Becaus these medications can interact with other medications, it is important to tell your doctor of all medications your child is on. While taking this medication, he may need regular blood tests to monitor the amount of medication in his bloodstream. If your child is having upset stomachs or is feeling dizzy, it can be a sign that the medication dose is too high.

References:

“Autism, Epilepsy & Seizures: How to Recognize the Signs and Basic First Aid When You Do,” Date Uknown, Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation

 
“Autism, Puberty, and the Possibility of Seizures,” Date Unknown, Stephen M. Edelson, Ph.D. Together for Autism

“Puberty, Aggression and Seizures,” Author Unknown, Autism Research Review International, 2005, Vol. 19, No. 1, page 3

“Revealing Answers Using the Unseen,” 2010, May, Arkansas Children’s Hospital Medical Research Institute

 
“Seizures, Epilepsy and Autism,” Date Unknown, Author Unknown, Autism-Help.org

Source:

http://www.healthcentral.com/autism/c/1443/142656/puberty-subclinical/

By Dalia Colon, HealthyState.org
In Print: Saturday, August 13, 2011

By DALIA COLON

HealthyState.org

Growing up, Paul McAuliffe says he “felt like a Martian.” He was always saying the wrong thing or overreacting, but he didn’t know why. Then several years ago for his job as a case manager, the Panama City resident started reading online about the symptoms of autism.

“And I said, my God, that’s me,” recalls McAuliffe, now 57.

The doctor’s official diagnosis was no surprise: Asperger’s syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder that impairs social skills. “I joke that one would’ve liked to have had this diagnosis, say, a half century ago,” McAuliffe says. “That would’ve been helpful.”

Still, he focused on the present, devouring in equal measure books about “Aspies” and neurotypicals — people not on the autism spectrum.

“They are the folks we have to interact with in order to live our lives,” says McAuliffe, who is on an advisory board for the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities at Florida State University.

For McAuliffe, a lifelong musician, American Indian flutes help grease the wheels of his interaction with neurotypicals. He travels the Southeast giving a presentation called “Flutes, Autism and a Different Way of Seeing.'”

HealthyState.org is a public media project of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting at WUSF in Tampa.

Parents can help children cope, an ‘Aspie’ says

McAuliffe describes what he has learned about his brain as “empowering.” In hopes of empowering others even earlier, here are some tips he offers for parents of children on the autism spectrum.

1. Always presume intellect. Researchers are finding that even kids who are nonverbal often have high IQs. Be on the lookout for new-tech ways to communicate with your child.

2. Routine is important. Those on the autism spectrum need to know they have safe, comfortable and dependable routines at home even when learning new things and experiencing new situations.

3. Encourage friendships with other children on the spectrum. There’s an intuitive resonance — a bond — between those with autism, and it’s a relief to spend time together and compare stories. Of course, friendships with neurotypical kids are crucial, too.

4. Encourage the child to be neurologically “bilingual.” As kids gets older, reading Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People can be a real eye-opener.

5. Speaking of eyes, children need to learn to fake eye contact. Encourage them to look at the mouth, the forehead, the bridge of the nose — whatever works.

6. Spectrumites tend to really get into certain subjects; that’s why they’re inventors and innovators. Encourage children to get into subjects that will help them in the world as they get older.

Read in Full:

http://www.tampabay.com/news/health/man-has-a-late-life-epiphany-i-have-aspergers-syndrome/1185587

David H. Skuse

A couple of years ago, I was asked about autism by a journalist from the New York Times. The reporter had been travelling the world, discussing the subject with many people who had contributed to our understanding of this fascinating and complex disorder. Why, she asked, was it that this subject aroused such passions? Never before had she come across a group of scientists who criticized each other quite so much as those working in the field of autism. She was astonished, dismayed and perplexed in equal measures.

This controversy forms the backdrop to a recent review of the history of autism, written by Adam Feinstein (2010). His story begins in the birthplace of so many ideas in psychiatry, Vienna in the 1930s. Here, in 1938, Hans Asperger gave a lecture on autistic psychopathy some years before the landmark paper by Leo Kanner (1943), which is often credited with initiating the avalanche of research that followed. Kanner was also born in Austria, but his parents emigrated to Germany when he was still a child, and he left for the USA as a young doctor in the 1920s.

The origins of the term autism are therefore mired in controversy, with some claiming that Kanner plagiarized Asperger’s work. Certainly, he was better known in English-speaking countries for years before the latter’s papers were translated. The term ‘Asperger syndrome’ has since acquired a connotation that is far-removed from what Asperger himself described. It has become a sort of ‘autism for the middle classes’ and is about to be consigned to history. In the 5th revision of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, the eponym will be abolished. Lorna Wing, who was responsible for introducing Asperger’s work to the English-speaking world ( Wing, 1981), will not be sad to hear this. …

by: K. M. Lampi, A. Sourander, M. Gissler, S. Niemelä, K. Rehnström, E. Pulkkinen, L. Peltonen, L. Von Wendt

First Published: Friday, August 05, 2011, 7:15 AM     Updated: Friday, August 05, 2011, 7:25 AM]

By Frank Donnelly

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The state is looking to fire the supervisor whom prosecutors deem criminally responsible in the death of a 27-year-old autistic man in a South Beach mental health unit last December.

 
Erik Stanley, 37, of Middletown, N.J., has been suspended without pay in the aftermath of the death of Jawara Henry, 27, at the state-run Multiple Disabilities Unit at 777 Seaview Ave. on Dec. 4, said Travis Proulx, a spokesman for the state Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, which runs the unit.

Yesterday, prosecutors announced Stanley’s indictment on charges of criminally negligent homicide, accusing him of putting Henry in a fatal chokehold instead of restraining him properly when he became erratic and started biting people.

“We are seeking Mr. Stanley’s termination, and will unequivocally seek the termination of any employee who is guilty of abuse or neglect of an individual with developmental disabilities,” Proulx said on Wednesday.

 
The Multiple Disabilities Unit is located on the South Beach Community Campus, a state-owned complex that houses a number of facilities that serve individuals with special needs, including the South Beach Psychiatric Center.

Proulx also commented generally on restraint practices in the unit:

“[The agency] has training and certification for staff in proper techniques and acceptable use of restraint. Recertification is required annually. Training focuses on calming techniques to avoid intrusive restraint.

Read in Full:

http://www.silive.com/eastshore/index.ssf/2011/08/state_moves_to_fire_mental_hea.html

William Kotarski has Aspergers Syndrome and has just achieved a first in a maths masters degree.

Published on Friday 5 August 2011 11:00

OBTAINING a first class masters degree in maths is a huge achievement for anyone.

But the success is particularly sweet for Dunstable graduate William Kotarski, who has Asperger’s Syndrome – and was only diagnosed with the condition two years ago.

Although very bright, the 22-year-old maths whiz, of Sundown Avenue, has always struggled with social pleasantries and communicating with strangers.

And simple things like going to the shop or using public transport requires lots of preparation.

Mum Hilary told the Gazette: “We’ve had to train him to do things. If he wanted to go to the shops we had to walk him through it first.”

And William agreed. He said: “I went to Reading on the train at the weekend and I had to do a trial run with my dad to start with. That sort of thing used to be really hard but I’ve got a bit better at it.”

William – a former Hadrian Lower, Millvale Middle and Northfields Upper pupil – showed signs of Asperger’s from a young age, but it was only when he went to the University of Reading that he was encouraged to see a doctor by a friend who was also on the autistic spectrum.

He said: “I thought that it made sense for me to have Asperger’s but I didn’t want to self-diagnose.

“If you read the list of symptoms of Asperger’s, most teenagers might think ‘oh, that’s me’. But my friend almost physically dragged me to the disability office for an assessment.”

His parents were asked to bring a medical history and meet with staff and just one hour after the assessment, William was told he has Asperger’s.

“We weren’t surprised,” admitted Hilary. “I didn’t want him to have a diagnosis but he did. I didn’t think he should have a label but he’s proud to have it because it makes him the person he is.”

And William can now also call himself master of maths after collecting a first class masters at his graduation recently.

He will head back to Reading in October to start a PHD.

William, who was awarded a prize for his dissertation, said: “I thought I’d try for a 2:1 but in my first year I got firsts for everything so I thought I should aim higher and aim for a first.

“I didn’t like school, it was boring. But university maths was really interesting.”

Hilary said: “We are really proud of him.”

Source:

http://www.dunstabletoday.co.uk/news/local/william_makes_it_count_with_a_special_degree_1_2926581