WEEK IN REVIEW

New NASET Publications and Articles of Interest in Special Education and Disabilities That Were Reported This Week

December 21, 2012 - Vol 8, Issue 49

New This Week on NASET

Researchers have identified nearly 100 genes linking autism and fragile X syndrome, the most common form of inherited mental retardation, according to a new study. The findings could improve the diagnosis and treatment of both disorders, researchers from Duke University Medical Center and Rockefeller University suggested. Daniel Smith, director of discovery neuroscience at the advocacy group Autism Speaks, agreed that the research "provides important insights" into molecular mechanisms that underlie neurodevelopmental disorders related to autism. Smith, who was not involved with the new study, said that "while these findings do not offer immediate benefits to individuals with autism, they are important for early research into potential therapeutics." To read more, click here

As the number of English learners continues to grow faster than that of any other group in the nation's public schools, concerns are mounting that the distinctive needs of those students and the educators who work with them are receiving diminishing attention from the U.S. Department of Education. Even as the federal government spends roughly $750 million a year to help educate a population that's grown to be one out of every 10 students, the department's office of English-language acquisition, or OELA, has seen its clout steadily shrink. To read more, click here

The number of child abuse and neglect cases reported in the United States in 2011 fell for the fifth consecutive year, according to a new federal government report. About 681,000 cases of child abuse or neglect were documented last year, which continues the steady decrease from 723,000 cases in 2007, said the document from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families. However, the number of child deaths due to maltreatment has fluctuated. Deaths peaked at 1,740 in 2009, but were at a five-year low of 1,570 in 2011. "We have made excellent progress over the past five years," George Sheldon, acting assistant secretary of the administration, said in an HHS news release. "But what this report tells me is that we still have 681,000 children out there who need our help. We must continue coordination efforts among federal, state and local agencies to focus on child maltreatment prevention." To read more, click here

More babies born premature are surviving, but they are just as likely to experience serious disabilities, researchers say. In two new studies comparing the experiences of children born premature in 1995 versus 2006, British researchers found that medical advances led to a 13 percent increase in the survival rate for babies in their first week after birth. What's more, when the kids were assessed around age 3, those born in 2006 were 11 percent more likely to have no disability at all. To read more, click here

Children whose mothers went into pregnancy overweight may have slightly lower scores on certain tests of verbal and numbers skills, a new study says. The findings, reported online Dec. 10 in the journal Pediatrics, do not prove that their mothers' extra pounds are the reason for these decreased scores, and experts not involved in the study said it's too soon to suggest mothers-to-be lose weight for the sake of their kids' mental prowess. But the results do add to studies showing that, for whatever reason, kids born to heavy mothers tend to have a somewhat lower IQ than their peers. To read more, click here

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TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Guess the answer to this week's trivia question and we'll recognize you in next week's Week in Review.

 

Congratulations to: Marilyn Haile, Ope-Oluwa Olubela, Edmond Saint-Jean, Kay Hennes, Cynthia Calanog, Sue Brooks, Rebecca Birrenkott, Olumide Akerele, Jessica L. Ulmer, and Elena Ghionis who all knew that: 

According to recent research in the field of autism, children exposed to air pollution from traffic and other sources while in the womb and during their first year may be at an increased risk for autism. Infants exposed to the highest levels of air pollution wereTHREE (3) times more likely to develop autism than those exposed to the lowest levels?

  

THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION: 

Recent research by Easter Seals on brothers and sisters of people with developmental disabilities from across the country found that about half of adult siblings of those with developmental disabilities either are or plan to be the primary caregiver for their brother or sister, but many are unprepared for the responsibility. Many are finding the experience to be daunting, fraught with emotional and financial challenges and little support. According to this research, what percentage of adult siblings are currently serving as primary caregivers of their brothers and sisters with developmental disabilities?

 

If you know the answer, send an email to contactus@naset.org 

All answers must be submitted no later than Monday, December 24, 2012 at 12:00 p.m.

As the fiscal cliff looms, most Americans believe that special education programs should be spared from federal budget cuts, a new poll suggests. In a survey asking over 1,000 adults from across the country about their views on education funding, some 57 percent said it's "very important" that Congress protect money for programs serving students with disabilities. That's a higher level of support than was expressed for any other education program including prekindergarten, college financial aid and programs helping school districts with large numbers of students living in poverty. To read more, click here

Exposure to secondhand smoke -- during their mother's pregnancy or later in the home -- greatly increases children's risk of invasive meningococcal disease, according to a new evidence review. Invasive meningococcal disease is a major cause of bacterial meningitis and can also cause severe illness when bacteria invade the blood, lungs or joints. Children and young adults are particularly at risk. The death rate for meningococcal disease is nearly 5 percent, and one in six patients will be left with a severe disability, including neurological or behavioral problems. U.K. researchers reviewed 18 previously published studies and found that exposure to secondhand smoke at home doubled the risk of invasive meningococcal disease in children. The risk was even higher for children younger than 5 years old. To read more, click here

The approach that parents take with their children who have developmental disabilities is directly tied to how cooperative and independent they become, new research suggests. In ananalysis of existing studies looking at the influence of parenting on children with special needs, researchers found that when moms and dads employed so-called positive parenting, their kids exhibited greater independence, better language skills, stronger emotional expression and social interaction as well as improved temperament. "In households where positive parenting is applied, the symptoms and severity of the child's disability are more likely to decrease over time," said Tim Smith of Brigham Young University who worked on the study, which was published in the journal Research in Developmental Disabilities this month. To read more, click here

A medication typically prescribed to control high blood pressure that's commonly referred to as a water pill may ease some of the symptoms of autism, researchers say. That's especially true for people who have milder forms of the disorder, the new research indicates. "Bumetanide is a promising novel therapeutic agent to treat autism," wrote the study's authors, who were quick to point out that this treatment is not a cure for autism and that larger trials need to be done to determine who would benefit most from this treatment. Results of the study appear online Dec. 11 in the journal Translational Psychiatry. To read more, click here

Every spring at St. Paul's Bridge View school for students with significant special needs, teacher Rachel Peulen spends two to three weeks administering a test that she knows will tell her next to nothing about her students. On most days, Peulen's middle schoolers each work on activities designed to meet their particular needs. One student works on remembering classmates' names. Another practices recognizing flashcards inscribed with simple words. Her most advanced students do simple arithmetic. But over three weeks, Peulen takes each student out of the classroom for up to an hour-and-a-half, so she can ask them to compare fractions, find the slope of a line and identify the main idea of a story. With no additional staff to assist her, paraprofessionals take over the class. "[A] big thing for this population is the parents-when you have a parent that comes in basically crying because the test is making their kid look so low," Peulen said. "I have to explain to them that this is not the picture of your child." That standardized test scores flatten the incredible variety of circumstances kids bring to school is something that all teachers recognize, but the problem is amplified in special education programs. To read more, click here

If children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, continue to have the condition in adulthood, a new study suggests that they may face an array of physical and mental health issues. The study, which spanned more than 30 years, found that people who had ADHD as teens and adults face a greater risk of stress, work problems, financial troubles, physical health issues and additional mental health issues, such as depression or antisocial personality disorder. "When children who had ADHD in adolescence became adults with ADHD, they had a higher probability of depressive mood and anxiety, and they were much more likely to have antisocial personality disorder. They also had difficulty in terms of work and experienced a great deal of financial stress," said study author Judith Brook, a professor of psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine in New York City. To read more, click here

Oxygen Deprivation In Utero Linked To ADHD

A study published in this week's Pediatrics finds that infants who experienced oxygen deprivation in utero are at an increased risk of developing attention-deficit (hyperactivity) disorder in childhood. Prenatal exposure to oxygen deprivation conditions, known as ischemic-hypoxic conditions, can result from birth asphyxia, neonatal respiratory distress syndrome and preeclampsia. Researchers went through the medical records of nearly 82,000 children between the ages of 5 and 11 and found that children who had experienced those conditions were 16% more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD later in childhood. To read more, click here

Children with autism are nine times more likely than other children to be taken to the emergency department for mental health problems, according to a new study. The issues include aggression; mood, anxiety and psychotic disorders; attempted suicide; and self-injury. The study also found that families with private insurance are 58 percent more likely to take children with autism to the emergency department for urgent mental health care, compared to families covered by state medical-assistance programs. Researchers analyzed data on nearly 4 million emergency department visits made by U.S. children aged 3 to 17 in 2008. Of those visits, more than 13,000 involved children with an autism spectrum disorder. Thirteen percent of the visits by kids with autism were psychiatric in nature, compared to 2 percent of all visits made by their peers. To read more, click here

Model Gifted Program to Expand in Three Urban Districts

A well-respected, full-day gifted education program, the Renzulli Academy in Connecticut, will be replicated in three other urban school districts. The Hartford Courant reported recently that the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation awarded the University of Connecticut's Neag Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development a $500,000 grant to replicate the Renzulli Academymodel in three other urban school districts. The existing school, named after a researcher on gifted education, Joseph Renzulli, opened in 2009 in Hartford, Conn., serving students in 4th grade through 6th grade. It now has 115 students in 4th through 9th grades and the goal is for it to have a full elementary, middle, and high school program. To read more, click here

Can Teens' Lack of Sleep Lead to Diabetes?

Getting more sleep may help reduce teens' future risk of developing diabetes, according to a new study. For one week, researchers tracked the amount of sleep and insulin resistance levels in 245 healthy high schools students. Overall, the students averaged 6.4 hours of sleep a night, but got significantly less sleep on school days than on the weekend. Lower amounts of sleep were associated with higher insulin resistance -- determined by a blood test -- even when taking students' race, age, gender, waist size and body mass index (a measure of body fat based on height and weight) into account, according to the study published in a recent issue of the journalSleep. To read more, click here