New Developments on Autism and Asperger’s

The Huffington Post’s staff writer, Bahar Gholipour reports on new research findings on the different brain patterns and connectivity of children with autism, in comparison to children with Asperger’s syndrome.

In Gholipour’s article: ‘Asperger’s And Autism: Researchers Find Brain Differences’, he reports that in a 400-participant study, researchers observed stronger connections between several regions in the left hemisphere of the brain in children with Asperger’s, in comparison to both children with autism and typically-developing children.

These research findings provide excitement, and provide new research avenues for future studies.  However, the study draws criticism to the recent DSM-V changes that merged Asperger’s syndrome into a general category of autism spectrum disorders (ASD).  What do these differences mean, and how will they influence future treatment for individuals with Asperger’s?

Questions like these, and many others are just the beginning for those in the mental health community.  To read more, you can find the full article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/05/aspergers-autism-brain-differences_n_3707791.html

Reference:

Gholipour, B. (2013).  ‘Asperger’s and Autism: Researchers Find Brain Differences’. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/05/aspergers-autism-brain-differences_n_3707791.html

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© Vanessa Lemminger, M.A. Marriage and Family Therapist 53937, 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Vanessa Lemminger, Marriage and Family Therapist 53937 with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Animals and Grief

In the April 15th issue of Time Magazine, there is a very interesting article about new evidence that animals can experience grief.  The article goes on to even suggest that animals may hold wakes for their dead.  The article cites examples of crows covering dead flockmates with grass and twigs as a tribute, and cats revisiting places where a deceased companion used to be found, followed by a distinct cry.  The article gives other examples from different animals, including Bonobos, elephants, Baboons, dogs, and even rabbits.  For those interested in animal grief, it was a very interesting article, and I recommend reading it!