ScienceDaily (Feb. 1, 2010) — Through the use of instructional DVDs, parents of children with autism can learn how to teach their child to communicate and improve their behavior, according to research published in the January 2010 issue of The Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions
Family members play a central role in the education and treatment of children with autism. However, training parents in appropriate techniques can provide unique challenges.
Often, mothers and fathers are not available at the same time to participate in training. Contemporary work schedules no longer conform to a traditional 9 to 5 schedule, further complicating efforts to help parents with their child. And, many families are simply too far away from training opportunities to participate on a regular basis. Providing family members with the type of flexibility they need to participate in training is often beyond the capability of most of these programs.
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara (Nicolette Nefdt, Robert Koegel, George Singer and Michael Gerber) explored whether providing training to parents through DVDs could help bridge this gap. The good news is that parents did improve their skills through watching the training videos, and there were improvements in child behavior as well.
"Many parents of children with ASD are motivated and able to implement evidenced based intervention with minimal support," said researcher Nicolette Nefdt. "Once provided with a rationale, step by step instructions and video examples, parents were able to change their behavior and begin teaching their child to communicate. Parents who completed the program commented mostly on the ease and flexibility of use of a program such as this one, the value of the video examples and the enjoyment of working with their child."
"This is very exciting to us, as we are now able to help many more people more quickly than we could otherwise," said co-author Robert Koegel.
segunda-feira, 8 de Fevereiro de 2010
Formação
Na sequência do Seminário sobre Treino de Competências Sociais nas Perturbações do Espectro do Autismo, efectuado em 10 de Outubro de 2009 em Guifões – Matosinhos, pela Drª Patrícia Sousa, a Delegação Norte da APSA, vai promover a realização de 3 workshops, com aquela técnica, cuja descriminação segue em anexo.
Estes workshops destinam-se prioritariamente a profissionais (professores, psicólogos, terapeutas, outros técnicos) e terão um limite de 20 inscrições cada.
Preço
O valor da Incrição é de 50 euros por cada workshop.
As inscrições deverão ser efectuadas exclusivamente por telefone, para o nº 229515108 entre as 10,30h e as 12,30h ou entre as 14h e as 18h nos dias úteis, indicando o nome, a profissão, o endereço de e-mail, o nº de contribuinte e o telefone de contacto.
Ser-lhe-á comunicado nesse momento se ainda tem vaga e em caso afirmativo, qual o nº de inscrição, ficando esta pendente da confirmação do pagamento.
Pagamento
O pagamento deverá ser efectuado por depósito em numerário ou por transferência bancária através do NIB 0033 0000 45257243247 05
Sempre que possível indique a refª. WSPS01 se for para o 1º ou WSPS02 se for para o 2º ou WSPS03 se for para o 3º workshop.
Em caso de inscrição nos 3 workshops, deverá escrever como referência WSPS010203.
A inscrição só é considerada válida mediante a realização do pagamento
Em qualquer das modalidades deverá ser enviado o comprovativo da transferência/depósito para o e-mail apsanorte@iol.pt ou por fax para o nº 229515108 .
Quando o pagamento estiver confirmado, ser-lhe-á enviado por e-mail o respectivo recibo e a indicação do local onde se efectuará o workshop.
Estes workshops destinam-se prioritariamente a profissionais (professores, psicólogos, terapeutas, outros técnicos) e terão um limite de 20 inscrições cada.
Preço
O valor da Incrição é de 50 euros por cada workshop.
As inscrições deverão ser efectuadas exclusivamente por telefone, para o nº 229515108 entre as 10,30h e as 12,30h ou entre as 14h e as 18h nos dias úteis, indicando o nome, a profissão, o endereço de e-mail, o nº de contribuinte e o telefone de contacto.
Ser-lhe-á comunicado nesse momento se ainda tem vaga e em caso afirmativo, qual o nº de inscrição, ficando esta pendente da confirmação do pagamento.
Pagamento
O pagamento deverá ser efectuado por depósito em numerário ou por transferência bancária através do NIB 0033 0000 45257243247 05
Sempre que possível indique a refª. WSPS01 se for para o 1º ou WSPS02 se for para o 2º ou WSPS03 se for para o 3º workshop.
Em caso de inscrição nos 3 workshops, deverá escrever como referência WSPS010203.
A inscrição só é considerada válida mediante a realização do pagamento
Em qualquer das modalidades deverá ser enviado o comprovativo da transferência/depósito para o e-mail apsanorte@iol.pt ou por fax para o nº 229515108 .
Quando o pagamento estiver confirmado, ser-lhe-á enviado por e-mail o respectivo recibo e a indicação do local onde se efectuará o workshop.
terça-feira, 2 de Fevereiro de 2010
Children With Autism Learn To Speak
The National Institutes of Health received $10.4 billion from last year's stimulus package, and the NIH said more than $8 billion of those funds went toward scientific projects and to centers involved in research.
One of those institutions was the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where researchers were working on a program designed to help children with autism learn to speak.
Ryan Wallace is a product of that program. Listening to him talk now, you would never know that a few years ago the 7-year-old didn't talk.
"He was tapping us on the arm or making noises," Ryan's dad Gerald Wallace Jr. Said.
Ryan was diagnosed with autism when he was 2 years old. He lived in a world of silence.
That was until his parents brought him to Vanderbilt's Center for Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences in Nashville, Tenn.
There therapists and doctors worked with Ryan to improve his vocabulary and speech, something that's difficult for some children with autism.
"The hidden side of this is that they also have a lot of difficulty understanding, comprehending, auditory comprehension, listening," said Dr. Steven Camarata of Vanderbilt's Wilkerson Center.
Because of the success of the program, Vanderbilt University researchers received a two-year federal stimulus grant of $670,000 to evaluate sensory integration therapy, a widely used but controversial method for improving communication skills in children with autism.
Ryan was one of the participants.
Sensory integration therapy is a type of occupational therapy that places a child in a room specifically designed to challenge all of his senses, which helps to stimulate speech. It's controversial because scientific data on its effectiveness isn't very strong.
Vanderbilt doctors are trying to build data on the therapy.
"When these parents are seeking answers, we as researchers can come to them with answers that have been tested and validated scientifically," Camarata said.
In the study, Ryan was given pictures on a computer screen and asked to name and identify the items. He was also given a story that engaged all his senses.
The study was two-fold. Once Ryan had gone through his therapy, he was fitted with special head gear that recorded his brain language sensors while he watched a video that incorporated the words he just learned.
By getting a picture of the brain, it gave doctors an insight into how the autistic brain works.
"When you learn a new word, you see it and then somebody tells you the name of it and then you link these things in your long-term memory," Camarata said. "People with autism have a very hard time doing that."
Ryan's parents said the program has made a huge difference.
And for Camarata, the stimulus has helped him jump start a program that would have taken months to get off the ground.
"We are finally starting to get to the point where we can test different interventions and see what works and what doesn't work, and that's crucial," Camarata said.
One of the main purposes of the stimulus was to create jobs, and it did. The parents who have children involved in the study said the jobs have also stimulated the lives of their children.
Copyright 2010 by News4Jax.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
One of those institutions was the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where researchers were working on a program designed to help children with autism learn to speak.
Ryan Wallace is a product of that program. Listening to him talk now, you would never know that a few years ago the 7-year-old didn't talk.
"He was tapping us on the arm or making noises," Ryan's dad Gerald Wallace Jr. Said.
Ryan was diagnosed with autism when he was 2 years old. He lived in a world of silence.
That was until his parents brought him to Vanderbilt's Center for Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences in Nashville, Tenn.
There therapists and doctors worked with Ryan to improve his vocabulary and speech, something that's difficult for some children with autism.
"The hidden side of this is that they also have a lot of difficulty understanding, comprehending, auditory comprehension, listening," said Dr. Steven Camarata of Vanderbilt's Wilkerson Center.
Because of the success of the program, Vanderbilt University researchers received a two-year federal stimulus grant of $670,000 to evaluate sensory integration therapy, a widely used but controversial method for improving communication skills in children with autism.
Ryan was one of the participants.
Sensory integration therapy is a type of occupational therapy that places a child in a room specifically designed to challenge all of his senses, which helps to stimulate speech. It's controversial because scientific data on its effectiveness isn't very strong.
Vanderbilt doctors are trying to build data on the therapy.
"When these parents are seeking answers, we as researchers can come to them with answers that have been tested and validated scientifically," Camarata said.
In the study, Ryan was given pictures on a computer screen and asked to name and identify the items. He was also given a story that engaged all his senses.
The study was two-fold. Once Ryan had gone through his therapy, he was fitted with special head gear that recorded his brain language sensors while he watched a video that incorporated the words he just learned.
By getting a picture of the brain, it gave doctors an insight into how the autistic brain works.
"When you learn a new word, you see it and then somebody tells you the name of it and then you link these things in your long-term memory," Camarata said. "People with autism have a very hard time doing that."
Ryan's parents said the program has made a huge difference.
And for Camarata, the stimulus has helped him jump start a program that would have taken months to get off the ground.
"We are finally starting to get to the point where we can test different interventions and see what works and what doesn't work, and that's crucial," Camarata said.
One of the main purposes of the stimulus was to create jobs, and it did. The parents who have children involved in the study said the jobs have also stimulated the lives of their children.
Copyright 2010 by News4Jax.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Ask the Non-Experts About Autism Detection in Infants
In a research project about early autism detection in infants, Dr. Daniel Messinger, an associate professor of psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Miami (UM), and his research group are doing exactly that.
"The idea is that human beings are essentially experts on certain aspects of interpersonal interaction. This seems to be particularly true for emotion, as understanding the emotions of others is critical to our own development," says Dr. Jason Baker, a UM postdoctoral researcher with Messinger and first author of the study.
The study used 188 non-expert students to observe the interactions of 38 parents and their six-month old infants, 20 of whom had older siblings with autism spectrum diagnoses and were considered high risk, and 18 of whom did not have a sibling with autism and were used as a control group.
The parents were asked to play with their child for three minutes and then to keep a still emotionless face for two minutes. The idea was to measure the infant's interactions and how their emotions changed in response to the unusual situation.
Each video was observed and rated by the students. The non-experts were shown the video files and were told to use the joystick provided to rate the emotional state of the subject in the video. A graduated color bar was provided with a neutral tic mark. Ratings above the tic mark indicated positive emotion (joy, happiness, pleasure). Ratings below the mark indicated negative emotion (distress, sadness, anger).The interactions were monitored and recorded by the non-experts.
The experiment showed that when the parents became emotionless, the babies who were at risk showed less positive emotion compared to the infants who were not at risk. Comparing pooled results from as few as 10 non-experts to results from expert coders showed a high correlation between the two groups, demonstrating that small groups of student can effectively gain similar outcomes to the coders who have gone through extensive training.
"These non-experts won't necessarily be able to do more than just observe and record what they see, but if used judiciously, they can be an excellent resource for researchers. Understanding the perspectives of non-experts can also teach us more about the concepts we are studying," Messinger says.
The use of non-experts greatly simplifies the process of finding people who can assign ratings for tests such as these. The process usually involves training coders using manuals "hundreds of pages thick" about measuring facial expressions. Then those people have to be trained in reliability and have to be tested, before they are even allowed to see tapes according to Dr. Messinger.
When asked about the future of this kind of research method, Dr. Messinger stated "We hope people begin to appreciate the utility and the appeal of non-expert ratings, and we are excited about the full range of psychological constructs that these ratings could potentially inform."
"The idea is that human beings are essentially experts on certain aspects of interpersonal interaction. This seems to be particularly true for emotion, as understanding the emotions of others is critical to our own development," says Dr. Jason Baker, a UM postdoctoral researcher with Messinger and first author of the study.
The study used 188 non-expert students to observe the interactions of 38 parents and their six-month old infants, 20 of whom had older siblings with autism spectrum diagnoses and were considered high risk, and 18 of whom did not have a sibling with autism and were used as a control group.
The parents were asked to play with their child for three minutes and then to keep a still emotionless face for two minutes. The idea was to measure the infant's interactions and how their emotions changed in response to the unusual situation.
Each video was observed and rated by the students. The non-experts were shown the video files and were told to use the joystick provided to rate the emotional state of the subject in the video. A graduated color bar was provided with a neutral tic mark. Ratings above the tic mark indicated positive emotion (joy, happiness, pleasure). Ratings below the mark indicated negative emotion (distress, sadness, anger).The interactions were monitored and recorded by the non-experts.
The experiment showed that when the parents became emotionless, the babies who were at risk showed less positive emotion compared to the infants who were not at risk. Comparing pooled results from as few as 10 non-experts to results from expert coders showed a high correlation between the two groups, demonstrating that small groups of student can effectively gain similar outcomes to the coders who have gone through extensive training.
"These non-experts won't necessarily be able to do more than just observe and record what they see, but if used judiciously, they can be an excellent resource for researchers. Understanding the perspectives of non-experts can also teach us more about the concepts we are studying," Messinger says.
The use of non-experts greatly simplifies the process of finding people who can assign ratings for tests such as these. The process usually involves training coders using manuals "hundreds of pages thick" about measuring facial expressions. Then those people have to be trained in reliability and have to be tested, before they are even allowed to see tapes according to Dr. Messinger.
When asked about the future of this kind of research method, Dr. Messinger stated "We hope people begin to appreciate the utility and the appeal of non-expert ratings, and we are excited about the full range of psychological constructs that these ratings could potentially inform."
Estimulación musical en niños
La profesora de música licenciada Viviana Sánchez Bobadilla publicó un libro con el doctor Javier Giménez Marimón: “Estimulación senso-musical integrativa en trastornos generalizados del desarrollo”. El médico avaló su trabajo desde la perspectiva de la siquiatría. A ella le consultamos acerca de esta estrategia novedosa y nos comentó que la música es útil para las embarazadas, para personas con cuadros depresivos, y el desarrollo de los niños en la parte educativa.
La música es una herramienta para que los niños descubran, conozcan y comprendan su realidad a través de su percepción y experiencia. Aparte de ayudarnos como herramienta terapéutica, este tipo de estimulación también ayudará a detectar problemas de visión, audición, etc. Y servirá igualmente como sistema alternativo de aprendizaje.
Empiezan desarrollando la estimulación auditiva que propone descubrir las aptitudes musicales que tiene el niño, desarrollar su capacidad expresiva, favoreciendo sus habilidades imaginativas y creativas, señaló la licenciada Sánchez Bobadilla.
Se puede trabajar el sonido a partir del silencio, la música cantada y la música ejecutada con diferentes instrumentos; por ejemplo, el violín, los tambores y el teclado.
La estimulación sensorial es la iniciación al ritmo y a la interacción social de los niños con Trastorno Generalizado del Desarrollo (T.G.D.) Por ejemplo, los infantes con un trastorno de la comunicación, conducta, autismo, etc. Los trastornos severos del desarrollo se ven en varios elementos: en lo social y emocional, en la comunicación. El trastorno generalizado puede afectar la motricidad, problemas vestibulares o auditivos, que impactan en el equilibrio del cuerpo.
La estimulación temprana ayuda mucho a un niño prematuro que necesita lograr equilibrio, coordinación, conocer el espacio y reconocer el cuerpo. Lo central es la estimulación sensorial.
El ritmo y los juegos
Es importante trabajar con los infantes de forma gradual para que ellos vayan incorporando el ritmo a través del movimiento, la expresión del cuerpo y los juegos musicales. Esto se realiza utilizando elementos corporales y la música. Es diferente la actitud que adopta el niño frente al ritmo y frente a la audición, el ritmo lo motiva al movimiento y el sonido a la receptividad.
La estimulación musical está relacionada con: la estimulación sensorial, estimulación motora y corporal, estimulación social, estimulación emocional, estimulación cognitiva, etc.
Cómo se hace
* En la estimulación sensorial integrativa (E.S.I.) se trabajan todos los estímulos integrados.
* Se seleccionan canciones de diferentes tipos, con las siguientes características: las músicas cantadas deben ser concretas, con metodología lúdica, con mucho ritmo, y adaptadas a las características de cada grupo de niños, de cada tipo de estimulación. Deben ser divertidas y gratificantes.
* Debe existir una relación del contenido de la canción con lo que queremos estimular: músicas que desarrollan la audición, la percepción, la expresión y la representación.
* Se realizan cinco actividades con música que propicien y desarrollen la estimulación táctil, auditiva y visual. Por ejemplo, se trabaja con masa, plastilina, masa de pan, y música suave con flauta o piano.
* Se coloca música suave de fondo y se trabaja con la masa, con fichas llamativas, cremas aromatizadas, masajes suaves, espuma de afeitar y burbujas.
* Se recurre a música instrumental con el xilofón, entre otros, que estimula la audición.
Viviana Sánchez Bobadilla, Magister en Gestión de Entidades Educativas, Universidad Católica. Miembro de la escuela Cedinane.
mirtha@abc.com.py.
Fotos: Claudio Ocampo y archivo de ABC Color.
La música es una herramienta para que los niños descubran, conozcan y comprendan su realidad a través de su percepción y experiencia. Aparte de ayudarnos como herramienta terapéutica, este tipo de estimulación también ayudará a detectar problemas de visión, audición, etc. Y servirá igualmente como sistema alternativo de aprendizaje.
Empiezan desarrollando la estimulación auditiva que propone descubrir las aptitudes musicales que tiene el niño, desarrollar su capacidad expresiva, favoreciendo sus habilidades imaginativas y creativas, señaló la licenciada Sánchez Bobadilla.
Se puede trabajar el sonido a partir del silencio, la música cantada y la música ejecutada con diferentes instrumentos; por ejemplo, el violín, los tambores y el teclado.
La estimulación sensorial es la iniciación al ritmo y a la interacción social de los niños con Trastorno Generalizado del Desarrollo (T.G.D.) Por ejemplo, los infantes con un trastorno de la comunicación, conducta, autismo, etc. Los trastornos severos del desarrollo se ven en varios elementos: en lo social y emocional, en la comunicación. El trastorno generalizado puede afectar la motricidad, problemas vestibulares o auditivos, que impactan en el equilibrio del cuerpo.
La estimulación temprana ayuda mucho a un niño prematuro que necesita lograr equilibrio, coordinación, conocer el espacio y reconocer el cuerpo. Lo central es la estimulación sensorial.
El ritmo y los juegos
Es importante trabajar con los infantes de forma gradual para que ellos vayan incorporando el ritmo a través del movimiento, la expresión del cuerpo y los juegos musicales. Esto se realiza utilizando elementos corporales y la música. Es diferente la actitud que adopta el niño frente al ritmo y frente a la audición, el ritmo lo motiva al movimiento y el sonido a la receptividad.
La estimulación musical está relacionada con: la estimulación sensorial, estimulación motora y corporal, estimulación social, estimulación emocional, estimulación cognitiva, etc.
Cómo se hace
* En la estimulación sensorial integrativa (E.S.I.) se trabajan todos los estímulos integrados.
* Se seleccionan canciones de diferentes tipos, con las siguientes características: las músicas cantadas deben ser concretas, con metodología lúdica, con mucho ritmo, y adaptadas a las características de cada grupo de niños, de cada tipo de estimulación. Deben ser divertidas y gratificantes.
* Debe existir una relación del contenido de la canción con lo que queremos estimular: músicas que desarrollan la audición, la percepción, la expresión y la representación.
* Se realizan cinco actividades con música que propicien y desarrollen la estimulación táctil, auditiva y visual. Por ejemplo, se trabaja con masa, plastilina, masa de pan, y música suave con flauta o piano.
* Se coloca música suave de fondo y se trabaja con la masa, con fichas llamativas, cremas aromatizadas, masajes suaves, espuma de afeitar y burbujas.
* Se recurre a música instrumental con el xilofón, entre otros, que estimula la audición.
Viviana Sánchez Bobadilla, Magister en Gestión de Entidades Educativas, Universidad Católica. Miembro de la escuela Cedinane.
mirtha@abc.com.py.
Fotos: Claudio Ocampo y archivo de ABC Color.
Mudança de cromossomo causa autismo em ratos
Experimento pode ajudar na busca por tratamentos do distúrbio
UOL
No Japão, cientistas ajustaram cromossomos de ratos para fazer com que os animais agissem de forma autista. Os roedores modificados por engenharia apresentaram falhas genéticas e comportamentos parecidos com os de alguns humanos que apresentam o distúrbio.
O trabalho, apresentado na publicação Cell, apresenta evidências diretas que ligam anomalias cromossômicas (consideradas responsáveis por aproximadamente 10% dos casos de autismo) e autismo. Em algumas pessoas com autismo, uma região específica do cromossomo 15 humano apresenta-se duplicada.
Jin Nakatani, Kota Tamada e seus colegas duplicaram o fragmento correspondente de um cromossomo de rato. Ratos que apresentavam o DNA extra demonstraram, entre outras características, menor sociabilidade, comunicação mais alta e maior habilidade em atividades repetitivas. Esses comportamentos são comuns em pessoas autistas.
O grupo foi além, procurando por diferenças moleculares entre os cérebros dos ratos com características autistas e dos ratos de controle. Os resultados sugerem que o rato autista possa apresentar um receptor de serotonina alterado, denominado 5-HT2c. A serotonina esteve anteriormente ligada ao autismo por seu papel no cérebro em evolução.
Os pesquisadores acreditam que esses ratos não apenas funcionarão como um modelo para o desenvolvimento de tratamentos para o autismo, mas serão também úteis para o entendimento de outros problemas cerebrais.
UOL
No Japão, cientistas ajustaram cromossomos de ratos para fazer com que os animais agissem de forma autista. Os roedores modificados por engenharia apresentaram falhas genéticas e comportamentos parecidos com os de alguns humanos que apresentam o distúrbio.
O trabalho, apresentado na publicação Cell, apresenta evidências diretas que ligam anomalias cromossômicas (consideradas responsáveis por aproximadamente 10% dos casos de autismo) e autismo. Em algumas pessoas com autismo, uma região específica do cromossomo 15 humano apresenta-se duplicada.
Jin Nakatani, Kota Tamada e seus colegas duplicaram o fragmento correspondente de um cromossomo de rato. Ratos que apresentavam o DNA extra demonstraram, entre outras características, menor sociabilidade, comunicação mais alta e maior habilidade em atividades repetitivas. Esses comportamentos são comuns em pessoas autistas.
O grupo foi além, procurando por diferenças moleculares entre os cérebros dos ratos com características autistas e dos ratos de controle. Os resultados sugerem que o rato autista possa apresentar um receptor de serotonina alterado, denominado 5-HT2c. A serotonina esteve anteriormente ligada ao autismo por seu papel no cérebro em evolução.
Os pesquisadores acreditam que esses ratos não apenas funcionarão como um modelo para o desenvolvimento de tratamentos para o autismo, mas serão também úteis para o entendimento de outros problemas cerebrais.
Movimento Pais em Rede
Convidam-se todos os interessados para uma reunião no próximo dia 6 de Fevereiro de 2010, pelas15 horas, no CEFPI, na Rua de Vila Nova, 1323, Vilarinha, Porto
A reunião tem como finalidade a constituição de núcleos do Movimento Pais em Rede (PER) na região Norte e o incremento dos que já estão criados.
Ordem de Trabalhos:
1-Balanço do trabalho já realizado pelo PER e Plano para 2010
2-Importância dos núcleos na ampliação da REDE.
3-A construção de um núcleo – “Os 5 Passos”
4-Formação de grupos.
5-Trabalho orientado de grupos
A sua presença é muito importante. Sem ela o movimento fica mais pobre.
A Direcção Distrital do Porto
--
Ilda Taborda - 919717627
Celeste Carvalho - 961331196
Fátima Gomes de Carvalho - 916498826
A reunião tem como finalidade a constituição de núcleos do Movimento Pais em Rede (PER) na região Norte e o incremento dos que já estão criados.
Ordem de Trabalhos:
1-Balanço do trabalho já realizado pelo PER e Plano para 2010
2-Importância dos núcleos na ampliação da REDE.
3-A construção de um núcleo – “Os 5 Passos”
4-Formação de grupos.
5-Trabalho orientado de grupos
A sua presença é muito importante. Sem ela o movimento fica mais pobre.
A Direcção Distrital do Porto
--
Ilda Taborda - 919717627
Celeste Carvalho - 961331196
Fátima Gomes de Carvalho - 916498826
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