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I just have three questons about autism and they're real simple:
posted by UMRBlog @ 01:41
13 comments
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13 Comments:
1.) No one knows and it's unlikely that it is only one cause. If you take your car into the shop because it's not running well there could be any number of things wrong with it- fuel pump, spark plugs, timing belt, etc. Likewise in autism there are likely multiple things that can not work as well as they should that result in the same clinically defined disorder. Plus Autism is not one disease, but a spectrum of disorders that encompass a huge range of social/mental functional impairments.
2.) The vaccine-autism link is nonsense. Two things led to this notion, which is unfortunately now part of pop-culture. A british doctor named Andrew Wakefield published a paper in Lancet where he claimed to have found a link between MMR and autism. The thing is, he made the whole story up. None of it was legit. Secondly people freaked out when they learned there was mercury in vaccines. Huge studies were done that found no link between autism and the mercury compound. So go get your kids vaccinated already.
Helpful, but how do I process the testimonial evidence about "My kid gets the MMPR and he disappeared into this troubled soul?"
I tend not to believe it's that simple but medical science is not going a very good job explaining it to me.
(BTW, as you suspected, I put the questions in the most simple-minded terms because that is how the public debate is being framed.)
TYFCB
3.) There is no drug intervention, because we don't know what to intervene with. I think there are various cognitive/social therapies with the more high-functional cases to help folks function in society, but thats about it. All in all, it's a good reason to write your congressmen and tell them to support increasing the NIH budget.
There are andecdotal cases out there where a child gets a vaccine, has a bad reaction and then winds up getting diagnosed with autism. The poster-case for this is Hannah Poling, who, the story goes, had an underlying issue that was exacerbated by the vaccine, at least that was the court's determination in the lawsuit. In an exceedingly small number of cases vaccinations can lead to high fevers, which sometimes can somehow lead to mental retardation. It's important to remember that Rubella used to be a way for your child to become handicapped- but not so much anymore.
That's why I raised these issues in this way. I really can't tell what's grassy knollness and what's real.
Even the autism legislation gives me a headache.
Now there are high-functioning Autistic people who are militant about remaining autistic (similar to the Audet deaf militants). I just can't keep up and I'm truly interested.
And apparently I misspoke in regards to treatment. While there is of course no cure, SSRIs, anti-psychotics, and some stimulants can be used to ameliorate some symptoms, but it's not clear how effective they are or if they work the same in all cases, again speaking to the heterogeneity of the disorder.
I understand that's the case but the cocktail is always a moving target and the SSRI can bring about a paradoxical effect.
Thanks
Childhood vaccines as the cause of autism has been scientifically debunked (too lazy to look for links) but at least blaming shots is better than blaming "cold, distant mothers", who were blamed for autism in the past.
But I say that as a "cold, distant mother". :-D
QCE-CDM,
Just tell yourself you're teaching the little boogers to be self-reliant. Just don't to the WalMart "I'll give you something to cry about! trick.
TYFCB
Psychologists really had it in for mom's back in the day...schizophrenia: cold distant mother, homosexuality: overly affectionate mother, autism: cold distant mother.
Awesome...
What's wrong with "I'll give you something to cry about"?
It ruins the exquisite ambiance of the WalMart Shopping experience.
TYFCB
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