December 2009, Vol. 9, No. 12

STUDY FUNDED BY THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH SHOWS THAT TREATMENT THAT INCLUDES PARENT TRAINING AS WELL AS MEDICATION REDUCES SERIOUS BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS IN CHILDREN WITH AUTISM AND RELATED CONDITIONS
A study published in the December 2009 issue to the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry reports that treatment that includes medication as well as a structured training program for parents reduces serious behavioral problems in children with autism and related conditions. The researchers developed a parent training manual and related materials, which they plan to make available for broad use. Funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the study was part of the NIMH Research Units on Pediatric Psychopharmacology (RUPP) Autism Network. Read the NIMH news release or the full article.

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CALL FOR PAPERS FOR AAIDD’S ANNUAL MEETING IN JUNE 2010: DEADLINE FOR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION IS JANUARY 5, 2010
“Imagining the Future, Celebrating the Past” is the theme of AAIDD’s 134th annual meeting, June 8-11, 2010 in Providence, Rhode Island. Proposals are sought for panel sessions, academy sessions, interactive poster presentations, and workshops. Read more about specific subjects to be addressed, types presentations, and rules for submission.

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STUDY SHOWS COST EFFICIENCY OF SUPPORTED EMPLOYEES WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES WHO WERE SERVED BY VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION AGENCIES
A study published in the January 2010 issue of the American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities found that, on average, for the period 2002 to 2007, supported employees with intellectual disabilities who were served by vocational rehabilitation agencies across the United States were cost-efficient from the taxpayers’ perspective, whether they had secondary disabilities or not. However, the data showed that cost efficiency varied considerably throughout the states and the U.S. territories. Read the full article.

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NEW STUDIES OFFER GREATER INSIGHT INTO BRAIN PROCESSES
Research released at the Society for Neurosurgery annual conference dealt with how the brain’s ability to recognize and process facial data goes awry in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism, as well as Williams, Rett’s, Fragile X, and Timothy syndromes. Another presentation dealt with certain cell adhesion molecules in brain synapses whose genes are often mutated in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Read more, with abstracts.

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SPECIAL EDUCATION SCORECARDS GIVE INFORMATION ON EVERY STATE’S SPECIAL ED ENROLLMENT, STUDENT PERFORMANCE, AND MORE
The National Center for Learning Disabilities has issued special education scorecards for every state in the nation, with enrollment statistics, including students with learning disabilities who are enrolled in special ed, student performance on key indicators, federal funding to states to support special ed, and the state’s latest rating by the U.S. Department of Education on its State Performance Plan (data as of September 1, 2009). Click on a map to find any state’s scorecard. Entire report can also be downloaded.

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