EEG Test in Young Children Offers Hope as Potential Diagnostic Tool for Autism

There has been much international attention on the recent publication in BMC Medicine of a study by Harvard University and Children’s Hospital Boston on EEG testing in young children as young as two years of age.  The study aimed to identify factors that separate children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from those without. One such article in ScienceDaily (June 25, 2012) summarizes the research conducted by Dr. Frank H. Duffy, Dept. of Neurology, and Heidelise Als, PhD., Dept. of Psychiatry, both at Boston Children’s Hospital.

The results revealed that children with autism exhibit consistent EEG patterns indicating altered connectivity between brain regions, “generally, reduced connectivity as compared with controls.”  In the ScienceDaily article, Dr. Duffy was quoted, “We studied the typical autistic child seeing a behavioral specialist — children who typically don’t cooperate well with EEGs and are very hard to study. No one has extensively studied large samples of these children with EEGs, in part because of the difficulty of getting reliable EEG recordings from them.”

The study offers hope that EEG may provide a diagnostic test for the disorder on several levels, including early diagnosis which would enable children to begin therapy right away.  In addition, it may help determine if Asperger’s should be considered a separate condition; indicate whether or not siblings of children with ASD may develop the same disorder; and track the effect of different types of autism treatment on the condition.

“We at Little Star Center want to start applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy as early as possible.  We are really excited about the possibility of individuals being diagnosed as early as 18 months of age,” said Tim Courtney, Little Star Center Research & Training Director.  “Little Star  has had one learner undergo an EEG scan already to help us evaluate behavioral strategies to get kids to comply with EEG, and begin evaluating the effectiveness of ABA at changing the structure of the brain.  We hope to get more done moving forward as EEG diagnosis has an 80% accuracy rate.  In practice, we’d like to have the test done before a learner begins ABA training then scan a year later to determine the value of ABA. The child we scanned had already been receiving ABA training; so, we can’t do the type of comparison we ideally want in that case.  However, the doctor with whom we are working (Dr. Jane Yip) believes she saw ABA greatly helping the child.”

Dr. Jane Yip, PhD. is familiar with this study and is conducting more EEG’s in young children.  She noted that they are finding that “coherence” is affected in autism.  “Brain activity as a whole is functioning in a different way (in individuals with autism) from the neurotypicals (normals),” she said.  “It’s like a person who has broken a leg will limp and the entire gait will be affected no matter which angle you choose to look at it from. This is a new frontier.  It will be beneficial to further development of autism research to have data showing pre- and post changes of (brain) profiles and look for the biomarker that is most sensitive to treatment. Better visualization of results, both in behavior and brain performance, will help the children improve in a way previously undreamt of.  The test is confirming to parents that ABA intervention can produce rewiring in the brain.”

Little Star Center and Toshiba Make it to Victory Lane with Jeff Gordon

Ken Hartsock, Vice President & General Manager, Toshiba Business Solutions, Indiana and Dwayne McCoy, Little Star Center Controller, proudly display one of the autographed bowling pins their team earned at the Jeff Gordon Bowling Tournament, a fundraiser to benefit the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation Pediatric Cancer Research Fund at Riley Hospital and the Wells Center for Pediatric Research at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Toshiba will be Little Star’s neighbor in the new expansion space for Middle Star and Early learners.

The annual event was held July 26 at Western Bowl in Indianapolis. Toshiba is a corporate sponsor with Hendrick Motorsports, which fields Jeff Gordon’s NASCAR team.

“As it turned out, Dwayne was the ‘ringer’ on our team, the clutch bowler that pulled us out of the hole,” said Ken.  “Had it not been for his help, we would not have ended up in the Victory Lane with Jeff Gordon.”

Dwayne said,” I am grateful to Ken and his team for giving me the opportunity to take part in such a wonderful event.  The real winners of the night were the children impacted by the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation.  It was a lot of fun.”

The Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation created a $1 million endowment to fund research conducted in partnership between Riley Hospital and the Wells Center for Pediatric Research at the Indiana University School of Medicine. The endowment fund will provide vital resources for Riley Hospital/Indiana University School of Medicine researchers seeking to impact treatments, therapies and cures. Since its first gift in 2001, The Jeff Gordon Foundation has given Riley more than $1.58 million.  The Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation and Riley Hospital for Children have a longstanding relationship built on mutual respect and honor.

“Toshiba has been an active supporter of the tournament for many years,” said Ken. “We truly have a tug on our hearts to give back to the community on a local level.  We are very fortunate to be in a position to contribute and look forward to partnering with Little Star in future events.”

 

Monon Center Lazy River

Little Star learners with their therapists visited the Monon Center water park as this week’s outing.  It is important that learners understand how to behave in normal, social environments and this outing is one of several Little Star offers its learners.

Little Star Staff CPR Re-Certification

Little Star Center staff participated in a 2.5 hour on-site CPR and First-Aid re-certification training program.  Conducted by Kay Maddox, RN, and Jay Williamson of On-Site Health & Safety Training Service, 18 individuals refreshed their knowledge and abilities and learned new recommendations suggested by the American Heart Association to assist individuals experiencing heart, respiratory, cuts or choking difficulties. Certifications are good for three years.

Artistic Talents Honed at Color Me Mine

Little Star learners of all ages flexed their creative muscles at Color Me Mine pottery studio in Carmel, Indiana.  They painted tiles which were fired and presented to the learners, who may give them as gifts to their parents.

Little Star Learner Receives Cool Ninth Birthday Present From Mom

A Little Star learner received the BEST ninth birthday present ever from Mom…a chance to check out an ambulance with the paramedics.  The Carmel/Clay Township Fire Department stopped by Little Star, providing an exciting learning opportunity for not only the birthday boy, but for other learners as well!

Little Star Learners Beat Heat at Mulberry Fields Splash Park

Little Star learners visited Mulberry Fields splash park in Zionsville, Indiana.  Mulberry Fields is a great park which features a splash park, skate park,biking and walking trails, and educational day camps.  Here, learners sprint through a spray tunnel, a refreshing break from stifling heat.

2012 Independence Day Celebration Parade

 

Little Star Center celebrated Independence Day on Tuesday, July 3, 2012, with a parade, hot dogs and refreshments. In spite of the heat, the learners and mascot Canine Companion for Independence (CCI) Newbury, a white Lab who served as parade emcee, put on a terrific parade! See parade here!

 

 

West Park Water Park Cools During Heatwave

Little Star and Middle Star learners visit West Park water park.  This Middle Star learner has found the solution to cooling off in the sweltering heat.

It is important that learners understand how to behave in normal, social environments and this outing is one of several Little Star offers its learners on a regular basis.

Dear Mary, July 13, 2012

Dear Mary is a bimonthly column whereby readers may submit questions to [email protected] and receive answers related to autism.  Mary Rosswurm is executive director of Little Star Center and also the mother of a son who has been diagnosed with autism.  She understands…

Dear Mary,

My son’s doctor recommended ABA therapy for him. He is four years old and doesn’t like loud places, lights on or other kids. I would like a home program for him.

Jeana, Indianapolis

 

Hi Jeana,

The reasons you described (dislike of loud places, lights or other children) strongly suggest why your son needs a center-based program and not a home-based program. A robust center-based program offers access to other children, a variety of staff, the speech therapist, occupational therapist, outings, group activities and multiple layers of supervisors. Since your son is four, the goal is to get him prepared for kindergarten, and it will be essential that he can tolerate noise, lights and other people. Addressing these concerns require clinical expertise and closely monitored programming.

While I know that as a mom you want to make your child comfortable — and he may be more comfortable at home with one familiar person working with him each day — that is not real life. He needs to be able to be around new people, in novel situations. Let’s face it – the world is bright, loud and full of kids. As he gets older, he will become more and more isolated if we don’t begin to get him used to these things.

For example, two years ago I was terrified of the iPhone – I had my old flip phone and I didn’t want to learn about this new kind of phone. It seemed very complicated to me and I didn’t see why I needed access to my email or the Internet constantly. I really resisted it until finally my supervisor insisted that I get one. Period, end of story.

So, at first I HATED it. I dropped calls all the time and couldn’t figure out how to turn the stupid thing off while I was on a plane that was heading for take off. I couldn’t work the tiny key pad (that wasn’t even real keys) and every time I tried to hit the “M” key, I would hit the “backspace” instead. I hated it and I was miserable. BUT…the more I used it, the better I got and I learned new things about it everyday. My co-workers would gently encourage me to try new features like the GPS or face-time.

Now two years later, I can’t imagine how I lived without it. I am comfortable with it. It simply was a new skill that I needed to learn, which is exactly what these obstacles are for your son – things he needs to learn to tolerate. It will take time, he may be upset at first, but he will get comfortable and be able to be around these things that he finds annoying right now. Don’t lose sight of the big picture – where do you want him to be when he is 8, 12, 15 and 30? Not home alone, but out with people in different places.

I would encourage you to look at a center-based program for your son and stretch his comfort zone!

Mary,

Executive Director, Little Star Center