Autism Spectrum Disorders

Autism is an emerging area of basic and clinical research, and has only recently been recognized as a major topic in biomedical research. Approximately 1 in 100 children are diagnosed as autistic, so it is also an intense growth area in behavioral and educational treatments. Financial resources have begun to be raised for more comprehensive research and an increasing number of scientists are becoming involved in autism research. In many respects, autism has become a model for conducting translational research on a psychiatric disorder. This text provides a comprehensive summary of all current knowledge related to the behavioral, experiential, and biomedical features of the autism spectrum disorders including major behavioral and cognitive syndromology, common co-morbid conditions, neuropathology, neuroimmunology, and other neurological correlates such as seizures, allergy and immunology, gastroenterology, infectious disease, and epidemiology. Edited by three leading researchers, this volume contains over 80 chapters and nine shorter commentaries by thought leaders in the field, making the book a virtual "who's who" of autism research. This carefully developed book is a comprehensive and authoritative reference for what we know in this area as well as a guidepost for the next several years in all areas of autism research.

Table of Contents:
Introduction: Autism Turns 65: A Neurologist's Bird's Eye View Isabelle Rapin Section I: Historical perspective, diagnosis and classification, and epidemiology 1. Autism Spectrum Disorders: Looking Backward and Looking Forward Michael Rutter 2. Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders Katherine Gotham, Somer L. Bishop, and Catherine Lord 3. Asperger's Syndrome: From Asperger to Modern Day Ami Klin 4. Regression and Other Patterns of Onset Sally Ozonoff, Kelly Heung, and Meagan Thompson 5. Screening, Risk, and Early Identification of Autism Spectrum Disorders 6. Epidemiology of Pervasive Developmental Disorders 7. Culture and Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Impact on Prevalence and Recognition Roy Richard Grinker, Marshalyn Yeargin-Allsopp, and Coleen Boyle Commentary: Issues in the Classification of Pervasive Developmental Disorders Patrick Bolton Section II: Core features and developmental trajectories 8. The Social Behavior of Autism: A Parallel and Distributed Information Processing Perspective Peter Mundy 9. Language and Communication in Autism Spectrum Disorders Helen Tager-Flusberg, Lisa Edelson, and Rhiannon Luyster 10. Cognitive and Neural Correlates of Language in Autism Wouter B. Groen and Jan K. Buitelaar 11. Repetitive Behaviors in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders James W. Bodfish 12. Developmental Features and Trajectories Associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders in Infants and Toddlers Rebecca J. Landa 13. Development from Preschool through School Age Tony Charman 14. Adolescents and Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders Marsha Mailick Seltzer, Jan S. Greenberg, Julie Lounds Taylor, Leann Smith, Gael I. Orsmond, Anna Esbensen, and Jinkuk Hong Commentary: Issues in Defining the Core Features of Autism through the Lifespan by Katherine A. Loveland Section III: Psychiatric and medical co-morbidities 15. Intellectual Disabilities and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Cautionary Note Elisabeth M. Dykens and Miriam Lense 16. Comorbid Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Bonnie P. Taylor and Eric Hollander 17. Interface between Autism Spectrum Disorders and Obsessive-Compulsive Behaviors: A Genetic and Developmental Perspective Suma Jacob, Angeli Landeros-Weisenberger, and James F. Leckman 18. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Angela M. Reiersen and Richard D. Todd 19. Specific Language Impairment J. Bruce Tomblin, Karla McGregor, and Allison Bean 20. Anxiety and Mood Disorders in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder Peter Szatmari and Beth McConnell 21. Stereotypy and Self-Injury Lindsey Sterling, Annie McLaughlin, and Bryan H. King 22. Motor Functioning and Dyspraxia in Autism Spectrum Disorders Matthew W. Mosconi, Yukari Takarae, and John A. Sweeney 23. Epilepsy and Electroencephalography in Autism Spectrum Disorders Roberto Tuchman 24. The Immune System, Autoimmunity, Allergy, and Autism Spectrum Disorders Paula Goines, Andrew Zimmerman, Paul Ashwood, and Judy Van de Water 25. Gastrointestinal Problems in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders Timothy Buie 26. Sleep Problems Anne E. Porter and Daniel G. Glaze Commentary: Autism as a Medical Disorder by Christopher Gillberg Section IV: Broader autism phenotype 27. The Broad Autism Phenotype Molly Losh, Ralph Adolphs, and Joseph Piven 28. The Biological Broader Autism Phenotype Janet E. Lainhart and Nicholas Lange 29. Autism as a Quantitative Trait John N. Constantino Commentary: The Broader Autism Phenotype: Implications for Research and Clinical Practice by Jeremy R. Parr, Kerstin Wittemeyer, and Ann S. Le Couteur Section V: Neurobiology 30. Developmental Neurobiology of Autism Spectrum Disorders John L. R. Rubenstein 31. Neuropathology of Autism Spectrum Disorders: Postmortem Studies Cynthia M. Schumann, Steven C. Noctor, and David G. Amaral 32. Neurotransmitters Diane C. Chugani 33. Brain Chemistry: Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Stephen R. Dager, Neva M. Corrigan, Todd Richards, and Dennis Shaw 34. Oxytocin, Vasopressin, and Social Behavior: Implications for Autism Spectrum Disorders Meera E. Modi and Larry J. Young 35. From Toddlers to Adults: The Changing Landscape of the Brain in Autism Eric Courchesne, Sara Jane Webb, and Cyndi Schumann 36. Autism as a Developmental Neurobiological Disorder: New Insights from Functional Neuroimaging Nancy J. Minshew, K. Suzanne Scherf, Marlene Behrmann, and Katherine Humphreys 37.Electrophysiological Research on Autism Sara Jane Webb, Raphael Bernier, Karen Burner, and Michael Murias Commentary: Toward a Neurobiology of Autism by Pat Levitt Section VI: Etiology: Genetics 38. Whole Genome Linkage and Association Analyses Janine A. Lamb 39. Autism Endophenotypes and Quantitative Trait Loci Rita M. Cantor 40. Autism Subgroups from a Medical Genetics Perspective Judith H. Miles 41. Rare Genetic Variants and Autism Spectrum Disorders Hande Kaymakçalan and Matthew W. State 42. Known and Possible Roles of Epigenetics in Autism Richard Person, Xinna Zhang, Soeun Kim, Marwan Shinawi, and Arthur L. Beaudet 43. Isolated Populations and Common Variants Karola Rehnström and Leena Peltonen 44. Isolate Populations and Rare Variation in Autism Spectrum Disorders Eric M. Morrow and Christopher A. Walsh 45. Rett Syndrome and MECP2-Related Disorders Jeffrey L. Neul 46. Fragile X: A Molecular and Treatment Model for Autism Spectrum Disorders Randi J. Hagerman, Vivien Narcisa, and Paul J. Hagerman Commentary: Autism Genetics and Genomics: A Brief Overview and Synthesis by Daniel H. Geschwind Section VII Etiology: Environmental factors 47. Environmental Risk Factors in Autism: Results from Large-Scale Epidemiologic Studies Irva Hertz-Picciotto 48. Environmental Exposures that Increase the Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders Patricia M. Rodier 49. Autism and Environmental Genomics: Synergistic Systems Approaches to Autism Complexity Mark A. Corrales and Martha R. Herbert Section VIII: Animal models and theoretical perspectives 50. Zebrafish as a Tool to Study Autism Alicia Blaker, Gianluca DeRienzo, and Hazel Sive 51. Behavioral Evaluation of Genetic Mouse Models of Autism Mu Yang, Maria Luisa Scattoni, Kathryn K. Chadman, Jill L. Silverman, and Jacqueline N. Crawley 52. Modeling Features of Autism in Rodents Elaine Hsiao, Catherine Bregere, Natalia Malkova, and Paul H. Patterson 53. Nonhuman Primate Models of Autism Melissa D. Bauman and David G. Amaral 54. Autism as a Disorder of Functional Brain Activity Rajesh K. Kana and Marcel Adam Just 55. The Extreme Male Brain Theory of Autism: The Role of Fetal Androgens Simon Baron-Cohen, Bonnie Auyeung, Emma Ashwin, and Rebecca Knickmeyer 56. The Mirror Neuron System and Imitation Marco Iacoboni 57. Information Processing and Integration Keith J. Yoder and Matthew K. Belmonte Commentary: Translation between Different Types of Model by Francesca Happé Section IX: Treatment approaches 58. Applied Behavior Analysis and Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention Tristram Smith 59. Naturalistic Approaches to Early Behavioral Intervention Laura Schreibman and Brooke Ingersoll 60. Relationship-Based Early Intervention Approach to Autistic Spectrum Disorders: The DIR Model Stanley I. Greenspan and Serena Wieder 61. Intervention for Infants and Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorders Sally J. Rogers and Katherine Wallace 62. Relationships, Independence, and Communication in Autism and Asperger's Disorder Lynn Kern Koegel, Rosy M. Fredeen, Robert L. Koegel, and C. Enjey Lin 63. Occupational Therapy Linn Wakeford and Grace T. Baranek 64. Augmentative and Alternative Communication Systems Marjorie H. Charlop, Alissa L. Greenberg, and Gina T. Chang 65. Positive Behavior Support and Problem Behavior Edward G. Carr 66. Social Skills Interventions for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Connie Kasari and Jill Locke 67. Adolescent Transition to Adulthood and Vocational Issues Robin Gabriels 68. Family Adaptive Functioning in Autism Annette Estes, Vanessa Hus, and Lauren Elder 69. Psychopharmacological Treatment of Autism Kelly Blankenship, Craig A. Erickson, Kimberly A. Stigler, David J. Posey, and Christopher J. McDougle 70. Autism Spectrum Disorders: Identification and Implications of Associated Medical Conditions Margaret L. Bauman 71. Dietary, Complementary, and Alternative Therapies Susan L. Hyman and Susan E. Levy 72. The mGluR Theory of Fragile X Syndrome Dilja D. Krueger and Mark F. Bear Commentary: Future Directions in the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders by Evdokia Anagnostou, Mark F. Bear, and Geraldine Dawson Section X: Best practices in the diagnosis and treatment of autism 73. Best Practices: Early Diagnosis and Psychological Assessment Zachary Warren and Wendy L. Stone 74. Diagnosis and Assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Medical Perspective Daniel L. Coury 75. Best Practice, Policy, and Future Directions: Behavioral and Psychosocial Interventions Kara Hume and Samuel L. Odom 76. Pharmacotherapy for Autism Spectrum Disorders James T. McCracken 77. Best Practices: Pediatrics Mary Catherine Aranda and Sarah J. Spence Commentary: Bioethical Considerations in Autism Research and Translation: Present and Future by Holly K. Tabor Section XI: Public policy 78. The Economic Costs of Autism: A Review Djesika Amendah, Scott D. Grosse, Georgina Peacock, and David S. Mandell 79. Future Directions: Setting Priorities to Guide the Federal Research Effort Thomas Insel and Susan A. Daniels 80. "To Petition the Government for a Redress of Grievances": Introduction Peter H. Bell and Craig Snyder 81. Top Priorities for Autism: Asperger's Research: Perspectives from a Person with Autism Temple Grandin

About the Author :
DA: Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Beneto Foundation Chair and Research; Director, The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California at Davis DG: Gordon and Virginia MacDonald Distinguished Professor of Neurology, Psychiatry and Human Genetics; Director, Center for Autism Research and Treatment, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles GD: Chief Science Officer, Autism Speaks and Research Professor at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Review :
"This is an exhaustive look at a topic that has received a lot of attention lately. There are literally hundreds of references/suggested readings for further research. The book contains helpful tables and figures, including eight pages (front and back) of colorful, glossy pictures. It is a book that researchers and clinicians should have in their libraries." -- Doody's