A child reads instructions on a screen while seated with his head surrounded by the MEG's noninvasive magnetic detectors.

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) process sound and language a fraction of a second slower than children without ASDs, and measuring magnetic signals that mark this delay may become a standardized way to diagnose autism.

Researchers at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia report their findings in an online article in the journal Autism Research, published today.

“More work needs to be done before this can become a standard tool, but this pattern of delayed brain response may be refined into the first imaging biomarker for autism,” said study leader Timothy P.L. Roberts, Ph.D., vice chair of Radiology Research at Children’s Hospital.

ASDs are a group of childhood neurodevelopmental disorders that cause impairments in verbal communication, social interaction and behavior. ASDs are currently estimated to affect as many as one percent of U.S. children, according to a recent CDC report. [continue reading…]

Rate of Autism Disorders Climbs to 1 Percent Among 8-Year-Olds, Say UAB, CDC Researchers from uabnews on Vimeo.

Autism and related development disorders are becoming more common, with a prevalence rate approaching 1 percent among American 8-year-olds, according to new data from researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). read more

Source: University of Alabama at Birmingham

McElwain, who never complained about being left off the roster, shows us that attitude is everything.

A lovely heart warming story on this bleak and rainy Vancouver Sunday– which holds a lesson for us all.

Source: Hat tip Josh Catone Mashable 🙂