scholarly journals Accounting for motion in fMRI: What part of the spectrum are we characterizing in autism spectrum disorder?

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Beth Nebel ◽  
Daniel Lidstone ◽  
Liwei Wang ◽  
David Benkeser ◽  
Stewart H Mostofsky ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Intellectual Ability ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Autistic Children ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
The Impact

The exclusion of high-motion participants can reduce the impact of motion in functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) data. However, the exclusion of high-motion participants may change the distribution of clinically relevant variables in the study sample, and the resulting sample may not be representative of the population. Our goals are two-fold: 1) to document the biases introduced by common motion exclusion practices in functional connectivity research and 2) to introduce a framework to address these biases by treating excluded scans as a missing data problem. We use a study of autism spectrum disorder to illustrate the problem and the potential solution. We aggregated data from 545 children (8-13 years old) who participated in resting-state fMRI studies at Kennedy Krieger Institute (173 autistic and 372 typically developing) between 2007 and 2020. We found that autistic children were more likely to be excluded than typically developing children, with 29.1% and 16.1% of autistic and typically developing children excluded, respectively, using a lenient criterion and 80.8% and 59.8% with a stricter criterion. The resulting sample of autistic children with usable data tended to be older, have milder social deficits, better motor control, and higher intellectual ability than the original sample. These measures were also related to functional connectivity strength among children with usable data. This suggests that the generalizability of previous studies reporting naïve analyses (i.e., based only on participants with usable data) may be limited by the selection of older children with less severe clinical profiles because these children are better able to remain still during an rs-fMRI scan. We adapt doubly robust targeted minimum loss based estimation with an ensemble of machine learning algorithms to address these data losses and the resulting biases. The proposed approach selects more edges that differ in functional connectivity between autistic and typically developing children than the naïve approach, supporting this as a promising solution to improve the study of heterogeneous populations in which motion is common.

scholarly journals Developmental Language Disorder and Autism: Commonalities and Differences on Language

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 589
Author(s):  
Natasa Georgiou ◽  
George Spanoudis
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Autism Group ◽  
Developmental Conditions

Language and communication deficits characterize both autism spectrum disorder and developmental language disorder, and the possibility of there being a common profile of these is a matter of tireless debate in the research community. This experimental study addresses the relation of these two developmental conditions in the critical topic of language. Α total of 103 children (79 males, 24 females) participated in the present study. Specifically, the study’s sample consisted of 40 children with autism, 28 children with developmental language disorder, and 35 typically developing children between 6 and 12 years old. All children completed language and cognitive measures. The results showed that there is a subgroup inside the autism group of children who demonstrate language difficulties similar to children with developmental language disorder. Specifically, two different subgroups were derived from the autism group; those with language impairment and those without. Both autism and language-impaired groups scored lower than typically developing children on all language measures indicating a common pathology in language ability. The results of this study shed light on the relation between the two disorders, supporting the assumption of a subgroup with language impairment inside the autism spectrum disorder population. The common picture presented by the two developmental conditions highlights the need for further research in the field.

Functional changes during visuo-spatial working memory in autism spectrum disorder: 2-year longitudinal functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Autism ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 639-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa M Vogan ◽  
Benjamin R Morgan ◽  
Mary Lou Smith ◽  
Margot J Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Neural Activity ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Functional Changes

This study examined functional changes longitudinally over 2 years in neural correlates associated with working memory in youth with and without autism spectrum disorder, and the impact of increasing cognitive load. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging and a visuo-spatial 1-back task with four levels of difficulty. A total of 14 children with autism spectrum disorder and 15 typically developing children (ages 7–13) were included at baseline and followed up approximately 2 years later. Despite similar task performance between groups, differences were evident in the developmental trajectories of neural responses. Typically developing children showed greater load-dependent activation which intensified over time in the frontal, parietal and occipital lobes and the right fusiform gyrus, compared to those with autism spectrum disorder. Children with autism spectrum disorder showed minimal age-related changes in load-dependent activation, but greater longitudinal load-dependent deactivation in default mode network compared to typically developing children. Results suggest inadequate modulation of neural activity with increasing cognitive demands in children with autism spectrum disorder, which does not mature into adolescence, unlike their typically developing peers. Diminished ability for children with autism spectrum disorder to modulate neural activity during this period of maturation suggests that they may be more vulnerable to the increasing complexity of social and academic demands as they progress through adolescence than their peers.

scholarly journals Sibling Relationships, Personality Traits, Emotional, and Behavioral Difficulties in Autism Spectrum Disorders

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Longobardi ◽  
L. E. Prino ◽  
F. G. M. Gastaldi ◽  
T. Jungert
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sibling Relationships ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Sibling Relationship ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Behavioral Difficulties ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Emotional Symptoms ◽  
The Impact

This study focused on parents’ perceptions of the quality of sibling relationship and its association with some behavioral and emotional characteristics of the typically developing sibling. The participants were parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and typically developing siblings. The sample size was 43. The group comprised 14 fathers (32.6%) and 29 mothers (67.4%) aged 33–53 years (M=43.56; SD = 5.23). The parents completed measures of siblings’ emotional and behavioral difficulties, siblings’ personality, and sibling relationships and their impact on families and siblings. The results showed that behavioral difficulties such as emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and peer relationship problems were significantly associated with negative sibling relationships—characterized by rivalry, aggression, avoidance, and teaching behavior toward the brother or sister with an autism spectrum disorder. The implications are that sibling-focused interventions should focus on improving negative sibling relationships to reduce the impact on the difficulties of the typical development of the sibling of both genders and shape the content and delivery framework accordingly. This can be done by providing skills and approaches for enhancing sibling relationships so both parties benefit.

Memory enhancements from active control of learning in children with autism spectrum disorder

Autism ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 1995-2007
Author(s):  
Valentina Fantasia ◽  
Douglas B. Markant ◽  
Giovanni Valeri ◽  
Nicholas Perri ◽  
Azzurra Ruggeri
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Active Control ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Inclusive Learning ◽  
Active Condition

Previous research with typically developing children and adults shows that active control of the learning experience leads to enhanced episodic memory, as compared with conditions lacking this control. The present study investigates whether similar advantages can be found in children with autism spectrum disorder. In this study, 6–12-year-old autistic children ( N = 29) participated in a simple memory game on a touchscreen tablet, in which they were asked to remember 64 objects presented in four blocks of 16. In two of the blocks, children could decide the order and pacing of study (active condition), whereas in the other two blocks, they passively observed the active study decisions of a previous participant (yoked condition). We found that recognition memory was more accurate for objects studied in the active compared with the yoked condition, even after a week-long delay. The magnitude of the effect was comparable with that obtained in previous studies with typically developing children and adults, suggesting a robustness for the benefits of active learning that goes beyond what previously hypothesized, extending to special populations. We discuss how these findings may help develop pedagogical interventions that leverage the active learning approach to promote inclusive learning. Lay abstract Research with adults and typically developing children has shown that being able to actively control their learning experience, that is, to decide what to learn, when, and at what pace, can boost learning in a variety of contexts. In particular, previous research has shown a robust advantage of active control for episodic memory as compared with conditions lacking this control. In this article, we explore the potential of active control to improve learning of 6- to 12-year-old children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. We presented them with a simple memory game on a touchscreen tablet, in which children were asked to recall as many of the presented objects as possible. For half of the objects, children could decide the order and pacing of study (active condition); for the other half, they passively observed the study decisions of a previous participant (yoked condition). We found that recognition memory was more accurate when children could actively control the order, pace, and frequency of the study experience, even after a week-long delay. We discuss how teachers and educators might promote active learning approaches in educational and pedagogical applications to support inclusive learning.

scholarly journals Object-directed imitation in autism spectrum disorder is differentially influenced by motoric task complexity, but not social contextual cues

Autism ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 199-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lacey Chetcuti ◽  
Kristelle Hudry ◽  
Megan Grant ◽  
Giacomo Vivanti
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Task Complexity ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Social Motivation ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Motor Execution ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Socially Responsive

We examined the role of social motivation and motor execution factors in object-directed imitation difficulties in autism spectrum disorder. A series of to-be-imitated actions was presented to 35 children with autism spectrum disorder and 20 typically developing children on an Apple® iPad® by a socially responsive or aloof model, under conditions of low and high motor demand. There were no differences in imitation performance (i.e. the number of actions reproduced within a fixed sequence), for either group, in response to a model who acted socially responsive or aloof. Children with autism spectrum disorder imitated the high motor demand task more poorly than the low motor demand task, while imitation performance for typically developing children was equivalent across the low and high motor demand conditions. Furthermore, imitative performance in the autism spectrum disorder group was unrelated to social reciprocity, though positively associated with fine motor coordination. These results suggest that difficulties in object-directed imitation in autism spectrum disorder are the result of motor execution difficulties, not reduced social motivation.

scholarly journals Mindful Parenting and Parenting Practices in Chinese Families of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 559-571
Author(s):  
Yaxuan Ren ◽  
Xiaoyi Hu ◽  
Zhuo Rachel Han ◽  
Xuan Yang ◽  
Mingyao Li
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Parenting Practices ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Mindful Parenting ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Chinese Families ◽  
Biological Parents

Abstract Objectives Parenting children with autism spectrum disorder may be different from parenting typically developing children. The current study systematically compared mindful parenting and parenting practices in families of children with autism spectrum disorder and in families of typically developing children in China. Methods 167 biological parents (Mage = 37.87) of Chinese children with autism spectrum disorder and 167 biological parents (Mage = 38.04) of typical developing children completed questionnaires regarding mindful parenting and parenting practices. A multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to compare between the two types of families with parent/child gender effects on mindful parenting and parenting practices. Then a series of path analyses were also conducted to examine the associations between mindful parenting and parenting practices in the two types of families. Results Compared to parents of typically developing children, parents of children with autism spectrum disorder showed less listening with full attention, less proactive parenting, less supportiveness, more lax control, and more physical control to their children; in families of children with autism spectrum disorder (but not in families of typically developing children), fathers showed less proactive parenting and supportiveness to their children than mothers. We also found that parents’ listening with full attention and awareness of children’s emotions were significantly related to both positive and negative parenting practices in families of children with autism spectrum disorder. Conclusions Chinese parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and parents of typically developing children display different parenting behaviors. These findings can provide us more future directions in studying parenting behaviors in Chinese families of children with autism spectrum disorder.

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