View clinical trials related to Autistic Disorder.
Filter by:Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are highly disabling, persistent neurodevelopmental disorders. There are no available treatments for core symptoms of ASD or biologically-based clinical biomarkers. Emerging evidence indicates that levels of brain inflammation are increased in ASD. In particular, recent work implicates hyperactivity of microglial cells, the resident immune cells of the brain. However, the functional consequences of microglial activation remain unknown. This study will measure microglial activation in ASD using positron emission tomography (PET) brain imaging. Adult males with ASD (n=15) and healthy controls (n=15) will be recruited for this study and undergo comprehensive clinical and behavioral baseline assessment. All subjects will then undergo baseline PET imaging using a radiotracer that labels activated microglia. Subjects with ASD will then undergo 12-week open label treatment with minocycline, an FDA-approved antibiotic thought to block microglial activation. PET imaging will be repeated at 12 weeks to confirm target engagement. A subset of control subjects will also undergo repeat PET imaging to determine test-retest reliability. During minocycline treatment, ASD subjects will be evaluated every 2 weeks for safety, clinical impression, behavioral functioning, and measures of cognition. Results will provide important information regarding the relationship between levels of brain inflammation, cognitive and behavioral function in ASD.
This research study is carried out to examine the effects of Phosphatidylserine-Omega 3 supplements (i.e., Vayarin) among children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and ADHD. Participants will be randomised either to receive the Vayarin treatment (Intervention group) or to a Control group.
Autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) are highly debilitating developmental syndromes which core feature is social and communications disorders. Motor skill impairments are frequently described in autism, but few studies have addressed the question of their origin and their specificity. Furthermore, it is not clear whether motor problems encountered in autism are related to dyspraxia, or if they present with specific features. This project aims at deciphering the origin of motor problems encountered by children who grow-up with autism in order to propose early interventions that could influence the other developmental trajectories, such as the social one. Brain dynamics during sensori-motor learning is explored by applying magnetoencephalography (MEG) during the Bimanual Load-Lifting paradigm. Different motor processes namely: proprioceptive monitoring, use and update of a sensori-motor representation, anticipatory executive control will be correlated to brain oscillation modulation, both topographically and temporally. Two groups of children (aged between 7 and 12) are compared: a group of children with ASD and a control group of typically developing children.
The purpose of this Phase 1 study is to determine the safety of one, two, and three intravenous infusions of human umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (hCT-MSC), administered every two months, in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
The goal is to pilot a parent-mediated intervention for feeding challenges in children with autism building on recent research and current successful models already being used. A parent-mediated intervention would primarily occur in the home environment, working with the parent to establish goals and implement the intervention based on their child's specific needs.
Headsprout is a commercially available computer-based reading program that teaches children fundamental reading skills, including phonics, fluency, and comprehension. The Headsprout reading intervention has been shown to be effective with children with various levels of reading skills, but it has not been rigorously tested in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of Headsprout in a pilot sample of 18 children with ASD and reading delays to serve as a foundation for a larger, future randomized clinical trial (RCT). Eighteen participants will be included in the study and randomly assigned to one of two groups; the first group will immediately receive treatment with the Headsprout reading program and the second treatment group will receive treatment after 12 weeks. Treatment sessions will occur for one to two hours, two to four days a week, for twelve weeks. The participants who do not receive treatment immediately will be asked to complete reading assessments periodically throughout their wait time. Participation may occur in clinic or via telehealth.
The main goal of the study is to look at the effects of intranasal oxytocin on the brain in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Oxytocin is a hormone that exists naturally in the body and the brain, affecting a wide range of social behaviors and emotions. The investigators will study the effects of different treatments (3 doses of oxytocin and one dose of placebo) on brain functional connectivity at rest in patients with ASD, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Investigators also seek to study how the effects of oxytocin treatment can be affected by genetic, immune and environmental factors.
This is a prospective, longitudinal, exploratory, open study with a 6-month follow-up period to explore via a specific Smartphone© application the evolution of a child's behavior over 6 months and the (psychological and social) effects of these changes on the family.
The goal of the Novel Language Intervention for minimally verbal children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is to test the efficacy of one experimental treatment (AMMT) compared to baseline assessments and compare the AMMT efficacy to a control intervention (SRT), both treatments were designed to facilitate speech output in minimally verbal 5.5 to 12.0 year olds. This study aims to compare the two interventions (one intonation-based; the other non-intonation-based) in a single-blind, randomized controlled trial (RCT) that includes a comprehensive baseline assessment battery, 25 intensive 1-on-1 treatment sessions conducted 5 days/week, and a series of probe assessments administered at multiple timepoints pre-, during, and post-therapy. Despite the complex needs of minimally verbal children with ASD and the wide variety of treatments available to address many of those needs, there is still a great need for effective methods that promote the development of speech sounds and facilitate the production of those sounds in this growing population. While the primary aim of this RCT is to investigate the effects of AMMTversus a control intervention (SRT) on minimally verbal children with ASD and compare the two interventions to determine whether one is more effective than the other, this study also aims to examine whether baseline cognitive skills, speech praxis, joint attention abilities and/or neural architecture can predict the effects of treatment with AMMT or SRT in minimally verbal children with ASD.
The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of a 9-week, randomized trial of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) compared to placebo in 14 children (age 5 to 12 years) with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and a moderate level of repetitive self-injurious behavior (SIB). Additional aims are to evaluate the positive predictive value of a screening method to classify children with automatically maintained self-injurious behavior; to evaluate the preliminary efficacy of NAC for reducing repetitive SIB in children with ASD; and to evaluate biomarkers and possible mechanisms of action of NAC in children with ASD.