Posted on 09/07/2022 2:33:58 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Meghan Puglia, a neurologist at the University of Virginia, is working to detect autism in babies much earlier. Her goal is to help children with autism achieve optimal outcomes through earlier diagnosis.
“We know early intervention is the strongest predictor of optimal outcomes for kids with autism,” Puglia said.
Right now, she says the earliest age that autism can be diagnosed is at 18 months.
“All babies, before they leave the hospital, get a hearing screening and metabolic tests. There is no screening for autism until the baby is toddling around and starting to talk,” Puglia said.
Each week, Puglia meets several babies just a few weeks old. In her lab, they are contributing to help the next generation of babies.
“All of our babies that come into the lab were this tiny little stretchy swim cap, essentially, with little sensors that are embedded in it. This cap is our EEG system, or electroencephalography,” Puglia said.
The cap, made up of 32 sensors, measures the neurological activity of the brain. Puglia is using the cap to look for markers in the brain that denote autism.
“We’re really interested in looking at the variability in the way the brain is responding over time. You might think too much variability might be a bad thing, but actually there is a sweet spot is what we’re finding,” Puglia said.
She’s working to create new social development growth charts from the information she gathers. This will then help other children, too.
The session starts with a spit sample from the baby. Then the child gets adjusted to the environment with their mother. Next, the cap is put o and the gentle tests begin. Puglia and her teammates play different noises, create various senses, to see how the babies react.
Puglia says most of the children coming in are just a few weeks old but she understands not all parents can make that happen. She’ll see children at four months, too. The study is ongoing and the babies will continue to come in until they are 16 months of age so Puglia can see how they’ve progressed.
“We also have a sister study that we’re doing in the UVA Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the NICU, and that one is looking at babies who are born preterm,” Puglia said.
If the study is a success and the test works, the goal is to have all babies go through it, so there can be a better idea of which babies need a little help early on. It would be a supplement to the other tests newborns go through before they leave the hospital.
“We’re hoping to intervene even earlier and identify which babies would benefit from a diagnosis and additional care, that is the ultimate goal,” Puglia said.
Puglia says if they can catch autism at an earlier age, it will be easier for children to go into therapies ad get the help they need. While doing this study, she can already help analyze the way babies’ minds work at such a young age.
Puglia says she is about to see her 100th baby in the past year. She is still taking more for her study. If you are interested in having your child involved in the research you can go here and reach out.
“Neuroscientist at UVA working to detect autism much earlier in babies”
Vaccinate them earlier. That’ll make it easier.
stop giving them shots before they’re 2 yrs old
the cdc already knows there’s a direct relationship between when a child gets the measles/mumps shot and ending up with autism. their own study showed males are more likely than females to be susceptible
This is one of those things that I believe have good intentions and the potential to go horribly wrong.
A fake “disease” calls for fake tests.
Stop vaccinating infants & children and watch things improve.
I thought autism tards were supposed to be super smart
and hang out on 8Kun solving Qtard decodes and saving the world?
No kidding ... it comes off as seriously creepy to me.
I think there is a vast spectrum of autism.
My research showed that it happened in the third monthvof pregnancy..
There is a vast spectrum of variation. Asperger’s Syndrome falls into the mild end of the spectrum.
“Her goal is to help children with autism achieve optimal outcomes through earlier diagnosis.”
And how many children who would nowadays be considered “on the spectrum” but 30 years ago would just have been considered socially awkward introverts will be doomed to NOT lead a normal life once tagged with this label since infancy and herded into the “special ed” track?
This is a bad idea. Autism is already overdiagnosed.
I’m convinced that the increase in prevalence of autism is directly related to the over-prescription of antidepressants in women.
Don’t hold your breath for the pharma companies to search this out though…
Autism develops when the thalamus in the brain cannot process emotional input. I’ve worked quite a bit with all ages of autism spectrum.
Autism is a super masculine consciousness. You might notice that they frequently turn their head to the left to look at you from a right eye perspective. This is due to the optic nerve crossover to the left brain hemisphere.
Autism children generally have a real good memory, sometimes photographic. But it functions on a location directory for recall.
My testing frequently revealed trauma for the mother during the third month of pregnancy that hindered emotional bonding. This influenced neural development relating to the amygdala and thalamus.
We are. And I resent your terminology. My Father, further along the spectrum than myself, was a language savant and not only decoded in WWII but also worked in the development of early computers (Army). Obviously, since you are on this forum, you have benefited from his efforts. You’re welcome. He instructed missile guidance system electronics later in life, and was able to pick up and teach multiple language students just by listening to them talk during breaks.
What special powers do neurotypicals like you possess???
You are correct. This hinders emotional bonding.
Bowlby and Ainsworth’s research relating to children’s attachment and maternal bonding parallels this too.
Sixth month MMR vaccine -by Pfizer. Investigated a SIDS death the evening of the MMR vax. I asked the nurse if she thought the vaccine had anything to do with it. “We’re not supposed to talk about that”. Another Pfizer Kill shot.
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