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Weirdchild
Posts: 3437
Registered: Aug 2007
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 Posted 20-07-2008 08:30 IP
Caring for children with developmental problems such as autism or Down's syndrome can weaken parents' immune systems, research suggests.
Researchers at Birmingham University found they had a poorer immune response to a vaccine against pneumonia.
It appears that stress causes the immune system to function less efficiently, the team wrote in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.
Charities called for better support for parents struggling to cope.
Previous work has shown negative effects in elderly people caring for a spouse - but this is the first time that a similar result has been seen in a younger, healthier group providing round-the-clock care, the researchers pointed out.
A total of 60 parents received the pneumococcal vaccine as part of the study - half of whom had children with developmental disabilities.
Blood tests showed that those caring for a child with developmental disability had lower levels of antibodies to the vaccine than those whose children did not have such difficulties.
After one month, 20% of parents providing long-term care had an ineffective immune response, compared to 4% of the control group. At six months this had risen to 48% while the levels in the control group remained the same.
Stress
Study leader Stephen Gallagher said low levels of antibodies suggested parents' ability to fight infection was weaker: "This is a good indication that their immune systems are not functioning efficiently."
Stress was likely to be responsible for the immune deficiency, he added.
"These parents are sometimes extremely stressed and what they need is appropriate help and training."
Co-author Dr Anna Phillips said parents caring for these children are "incredibly dedicated" and not in a position to take time off.
"However, knowing the effects that providing round-the-clock care can have on their health may help raise awareness that these parents need help to manage their burden of care."
She said the parents should be added to the list of vulnerable groups eligible for vaccinations such as the flu jab.
"We are continuing this work by looking at how sleep patterns affect the rates of infection in these parents," she added.
Amanda Batten, head of policy and campaigns at the National Autistic Society, said: "Carers often display great strength and resilience whilst coping with this complex disability, but many receive very little help and support, and are under considerable stress as a result.
"It is imperative that carers are given access to services such as short break schemes to help them before they reach a crisis point."
Carol Boys, chief executive of the Down's Syndrome Association, added: "I am not surprised at the results of this study. It just confirms what we already suspected might be one of the consequences of the constant stress that families have to endure."
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Weirdchild
Posts: 3437
Registered: Aug 2007
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Posted 20-07-2008 08:32 IP
Autism 'has big impact on adults'
Almost half of adults with autism in England live with their parents, a National Autistic Society report says.
And just 15% of them are in full-time employment, says the society's "Moving on Up?" report.
But the society says this could improve if the right planning and support were offered to young people with autism.
England's Children's Commissioner, Sir Al Aynsley-Green, said the government had made progress but work was still needed to help young autistic people.
The NAS is calling for better support and services for young people with autism during the critical "transition stages" between school, higher education and employment.
Change can be difficult for young people with autism to cope with, and the transition from childhood to adult life can be especially problematic.
Support needed
The government's Special Educational Needs Code of Practice says all children with a statement of special educational needs should have transition planning from the age of 14.
Yet the NAS found that only about half, 53%, of young people receive such plans during their education, and only one third of those in mainstream schools do so.
Rosemarie Mason has five children, three of whom have been diagnosed with childhood autism - twins Sean and Eoin who are now 19, and 17-year old Mehal.
She said: "Like any parent I want them to do what they want to do, to support themselves and to make decisions for themselves.
"I'm realistic enough to know they're going to need support - they're going to need a network of support."
"But that isn't what's designed for adults with disabilities."
And Deborah Packenham, whose son Ieuan also has autism, said: "It's very scary because I know that when he reaches a certain age he will no longer be entitled to the support he's entitled to as a child.
"He'll be an adult, and support is very patchy."
Transition benefits
NAS head of policy Amanda Batten said many young people with autism were failing to fulfil their potential due to a lack of appropriate support at the vital transitional stage in their lives.
She said: "It is imperative that there is early and effective transition planning for every young person with autism.
"Many have a great deal to offer and should have access to appropriate support.
"If transition fails, young people can find themselves embedded more firmly than ever in the family home, increasing stress on the family and resulting in more isolated lives."
Sir Al Aynsley-Green, Children's Commissioner for England, said: "This research shows clearly why we must be extra vigilant to the needs of young people with autism so that they receive the right financial and emotional support to cope with adult life.
"Recent government initiatives for families with disabled children are welcome, but I continue to be told that poorly co-ordinated services and a lack of adequate resources to help them navigate their way through are adding to their difficulties - this must be addressed as a matter of utmost urgency."
A spokesman for the Department of Children, Schools and Families said it was spending £19m on a transition support programme to give disabled young people more "choice and control" as they move into adulthood.
"We are developing an autism pack for schools, which will include information on good transition planning," he added.
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Tigerlily
Posts: 7906
Registered: Aug 2007
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Posted 30-09-2008 13:00 IP
its very hard
Nanna to twins, nanna to 4 other singles life doesnt get much better than this.
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Weirdchild
Posts: 3437
Registered: Aug 2007
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Posted 28-02-2009 00:58 IP
Autism bill clears first hurdle
A Tory MP's bid to improve support for people with autism has cleared its first Commons hurdle, despite government opposition.
Cheryl Gillan's bill would put a legal duty on councils and NHS services to look after people with autism's needs.
Labour claims their autism strategy would achieve the same effect without the "blunt instrument" of legislation.
But Tory MPs cheered as they won a vote to stop the bill being "talked out" by 131 votes to 25 - a majority of 106.
They had entered the Commons chamber to support the closure motion in unusually large numbers for a Friday and the bill was given an unopposed second reading - allowing it to move into its detailed committee stage.
'Landmark victory'
Chesham and Amersham MP Mrs Gillan came top of the private members' ballot in December, which allows opposition parties and backbenchers to launch their own bills.
But although it had cross-party support, a letter from Health Minister Phil Hope to MPs earlier this month raised concerns the government would try to block the bill at its second reading on Friday.
'Bail-out' hope for autism carers
He said the government believed it was best done without legislation and was already planning work to achieve the same results. The letter was hailed as a "landmark victory" by the National Autistic Society.
But in Friday's debate, Mrs Gillan - who is shadow Welsh secretary - said she had a "huge groundswell" of support behind her bill, which she said was a "golden opportunity" for the government to showcase its action on autism.
She said she would "not let people with autism down" by dropping the bill and relying on a voluntary agreement.
'Good intentions'
Her bill is co-sponsored by Labour MP Joan Humble who said there were still "gaps in provision" of services that needed filling.
And Tory former minister Angela Browning, vice president of the National Autistic Society, told Mr Hope the government had "good intentions" but last year's promise to hold a study into the prevalence of autism had not materialised.
"This has to be enshrined in regulation and statute that will work," she said.
Labour MP Janet Dean, chairman of the Commons all-party group on autism, called for more assurances that measures demanded by the National Autistic Society would be implemented.
But Lib Dem Mark Hunter intervened to ask why she was "reluctant" to support the bill instead - which was "one of the best ways of being reassured about the progress of this issue".
Ms Dean said the society had asked that the debate should be used to "secure government commitments" and said the government's autism strategy was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to provide a "step change" in autism services.
Shadow health minister, Tory MP Anne Milton, said there was "no reason" for the government not to support the bill adding: "My fear is the government are playing a rather shoddy political game because in their eyes they simply can't bear the fact that this bill has been introduced on our side of the house."
The health minister said the government needed "no persuading of the need for action on autism" but statutory guidance, rather than a bill, would "address the key issues at a local level".
Mr Hope set out measures the government planned to bring forward including new "statutory guidance" for authorities on children with autism, "robust" data collection systems, commissioning guidance for Primary Care Trusts and a new consultation on a strategy for adults with autism.
Asked why government would not back the bill, he said: "Legislation can be a very blunt and crude instrument for driving through change, especially where the end we seek is better awareness and better use of the expertise and resource already in the system.
"We need to preserve for councils the freedom and flexibility they need to meet the complex web of local needs, not to avoid them, but to meet those needs in ways that are relevant to them in their area."
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Weirdchild
Posts: 3437
Registered: Aug 2007
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Posted 29-04-2009 08:43 IP
Genes 'have key role in autism'
Scientists have produced the most compelling evidence to date that genetics play a key role in autism.
They highlighted tiny genetic changes that appear to have a strong impact on the likelihood of developing autism and related conditions.
The changes influence genes which help form and maintain connections between brain cells.
The Nature study highlighted one common genetic variant in particular which, if fixed would cut cases of autism by 15%.
Previously, other genetic variants have been linked to autism, but they are all relatively rare.
Dr Raynard Kington, of the US National Institutes of Health, which funded the research, said: "These findings establish that genetic factors play a strong role in autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
"Detailed analysis of the genes and how they affect brain development is likely to yield better strategies for diagnosing and treating children with autism."
People with ASD, which include autism and Asperger's syndrome, have problems with social interaction, poor communication skills and tend to engage in repetitive behaviours.
In the latest studies researchers scanned the human genome for small differences between people who have an ASD, and those who do not.
The largest study, led by the University of Pennsylvania, focused on more than 10,000 people.
Sticky cells
It found several genetic variants commonly associated with ASD, all of them pointing two specific genes found on chromosome 5 which control production of proteins which help cells stick to each other, and make nervous connections.
One variant, linked to a gene called CDH10, was so common - present in over 65% of cases of autism - that the researchers calculated that fixing it would cut the number of autism cases by 15%.
They also linked ASD rather less strongly to a group of about 30 genes which produce proteins that play a key role in enabling brain cells to migrate to correct places, and to connect to neighbouring cells.
Other genetic changes pinpointed by the Pennsylvania team occurred in genes involved in a cellular waste system which probably ensures these "adhesion" proteins are kept in working order.
Lead researcher Dr Hakon Hakonarson said the genetics of ASD was likely to be complex.
He said: "Because other autism researchers have made intriguing suggestions that autism arises from abnormal connections among brain cells during early development, it is very compelling to find evidence that mutations in genes involved in brain interconnections increase a child's risk of autism."
But he added: "There are going to be many genes involved in causing autism.
"In most cases, it's likely that each gene contributes a small amount of risk, and interacts with other genes and environmental factors to trigger the onset of disease."
Similar findings were reported in separate studies published in Annals of Human Genetics and Molecular Psychiatry.
Science 'accelerating'
Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, an autism expert at the University of Cambridge, said 133 genes had now been linked to the condition, and much work was needed to piece together how they interacted with each other and the environment.
He said: "The puzzle is slowly being pieced together, and the science of autism is accelerating in promising ways."
The National Autistic Society said the exact causes of autism were unknown.
In a statement, the society said: "There is evidence to suggest that genetic factors are responsible for some forms of autism.
"However, the difficulty of establishing gene involvement is compounded by the interaction of genes and by their interaction with environmental factors.
"Various studies over many years have sought to identify candidate genes but so far inconclusively."
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