Get the latest autism updates from SPARK, including information about genes and ASD research, webinars, and personal stories from our community.
Our ‘genes’ page provides short, easy-to-understand descriptions of genes linked to autism. Under ‘research’, you’ll find the latest updates from SPARK and other autism studies. In our ‘stories’ section, families, scientists and others share their journeys. In our monthly webinars, speakers from the autism community provide useful information for families and people with autism. All are welcome–invitation links are issued in our monthly newsletter. If you have suggestions for webinar topics, please email us at webinars@sparkforautism.org.
Sandra Sermone refused to wait. She had seen her son Tony through heart surgery, a feeding tube, brain scans, countless blood tests, and medical appointments. This little boy who struggled to eat, talk, and play was getting worse. Sermone had three things: a telephone, a computer, and an inability to be discouraged. She would find an answer for what was happening to her child.
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Two brain imaging studies suggest it is possible to detect autism in high-risk infants as early as 6 months.
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Summers spent at a camp for people with disabilities inspired the psychiatrist to focus on autism.
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We asked you what you wanted to know about autism, and you responded with thought-provoking and important questions.
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The speaker for our ninth webinar is Jeremy Veenstra-VanderWeele, M.D., a child psychiatrist and neuroscientist who works at both Columbia University and the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain, in White Plains, New York. In this webinar, Dr. Veenstra-VanderWeele discusses what kinds of medicines and treatments for autism are out there and how researchers identify what works. He also offers practical advice about different medications and their side effects to parents of children with autism and adults with autism. This webinar is 60 minutes long.
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Patty Manning, a developmental pediatrician at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Ohio, sometimes sees patients in unusual places—in a car seat, walking around the hospital’s library, or simply in the clinic hallway. As a specialist treating children with autism spectrum disorders, she follows her patients’ needs and moods on that particular day.
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The speaker for our seventh webinar is Wendy Chung, M.D., Ph.D., principal investigator of SPARK. In this webinar, Dr. Chung discusses basic genetic concepts and shares recent scientific progress in autism genetic research. She also talks about the genetic aspect of SPARK. This webinar is 60 minutes long.
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Our fifth webinar, moderated by Alison Singer, MBA, features Ann Palmer of the Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities and Patricia Manning, M.D. of the Kelly O’Leary Center. In this webinar, our speakers discuss different approaches to partnering in the autism community. Each speaker brings a different perspective about how developing relationships from within the community enhance program outcomes. This webinar is 45 minutes long.
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The speaker for our second webinar is renowned autism expert Catherine Lord, Ph.D. Her talk will feature a discussion on interventions and what types of questions parents or independent adults with ASD should ask doctors and specialists. This webinar is 60 minutes long.
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Hospital emergency rooms pose particular problems for children with ASD. Yet, children with ASD are nine times more likely to visit an ER for psychiatric problems than children who don’t have autism.
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