CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- When Anjali Sastry received the formal diagnosis that her three-year-old son had autism, she feltas any parent wouldlost, afraid, and helpless. But after the shock wore off, she got educated. She read every book and scientific study about autism she could get her hands on. She shadowed her sons therapists, and met professors of special education doing promising research. She hunted down developmental psychologists to get ideas on learning techniques she could try with her son at home. She built teams of helpersfrom teachers to family members to babysittersand designed newsletters and reports that would support her childs learning. Over the years, whenever a friend, colleague, or friend-of-friend received a diagnosis of autism for one of their children, Sastry was the person to turn to for help. Many people told her: You should write a book. And so she did. Sastry says her book, Parenting Your Child with Autism, is one that she wishes she could have received all those years ago when her oldest son was first diagnosed. The book, co-authored by Dr. Blaise Aguirre, is both a handbook to help caregivers choose the right treatments and educational approaches for their child, but also a self-help … Continue reading →

TORONTO , June 1, 2012 /CNW/ - A specific antioxidant supplement may be an effective therapy for some features of autism, according to a pilot trial from the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital that involved 31 children with the disorder. The antioxidant, called PharmaNAC, contains pharmaceutical-grade N-acetylcysteine and is specially-packed to preserve its potency. PharmaNAC lowered irritability in children with autism as well as reduced the children's repetitive behaviors. The researchers emphasized that the findings must be confirmed in a larger trial. Irritability affects 60 to 70 percent of children with autism. "We're not talking about mild things: This is throwing, kicking, and hitting; the child needing to be restrained," said Antonio Hardan , MD, the primary author of the new study. "It can affect learning, vocational activities and the child's ability to participate in autism therapies." The study appears in the June 1 issue of Biological Psychiatry. Hardan is an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford and director of the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic at Packard Children's. Finding new medications to treat autism and its symptoms is a high priority for researchers. Currently, irritability, mood swings and aggression, all of … Continue reading →

Instead of taking May 4 off from work, David Ellis decided to pick up a shift at SSM St. Joseph Hospital West in Lake Saint Louis. A respiratory therapist for 42 years, Ellis works at SSM St. Joseph Health Center in St. Charles but said he picked up the shift at Hospital West so he could familiarize himself with its staff and procedures. After starting his shift that day, Ellis ran into a co-worker he wasn't expecting to see. During their conversation, Ellis said he started to lose track of what she was saying. "It scared the hell out of me," Ellis, 65, said Friday from his home in House Springs. "She was calmly talking to me and finally realized I wasn't holding up my end of the conversation. I couldn't remember anybody's name or couldn't follow the conversation, and I tried to speak at some point and attempted to tell her I was having trouble. I barely knew I was even there at the hospital. I never had anything like that happen to me in the past." The doctor who examined Ellis in the emergency room determined he had a stroke and gave him TPA (Tissue Plasminogen Activator), a … Continue reading →

BLOOMINGTON A new weapon could turn the tide of the battle against stroke in favor of the good guys. And the new treatment and medical professionals trained in its use are available at both Advocate BroMenn Medical Center in Normal and OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington. Two patients one at each hospital already have been successfully treated since both hospitals acquired the equipment and trained staff in the Solitaire revascularization device procedure. The device was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in March. This device is going to be a game-changer for us in terms of speed and assurance in retrieving the (blood) clot, said Dr. Ajeet Gordhan, the interventional neuroradiologist with Bloomington Radiology who performs the Solitaire device procedure at both hospitals. Few communities the size of Bloomington-Normal offer the new stroke treatment, Gordhan said. While its uncertain how often the new procedure will be used, Gordhan currently performs about two stroke interventions each month at each hospital using the previous standard device for blood clot removal called the Merci Retrieval System. If those numbers hold, Gordhan could perform about 48 Solitaire procedures a year in Bloomington-Normal. The earlier patients are transported to either hospital, … Continue reading →

BLOOMINGTON The first two patients to have the Solitaire procedure in Bloomington-Normal illustrate that the new stroke treatment may be used on middle-aged as well as older adults. David Rice A 48-year-old Normal man with two sons, David Rice has an active lifestyle. Hes in sales and project management for Probuild, a building materials supplier. He sees his doctor regularly, exercises and eats well. I would have to say I was in excellent health, he said. Late afternoon on May 19, Rice was taking a break from exercising with his 8-year-old son, Ryan, when he suddenly became dizzy and fell to the floor. His speech was slurred and he couldnt get up because the left side of his body was paralyzed. Paramedics took Rice to OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington, where doctors concluded he was having a stroke. He was given the intravenous medicine tPA to dissolve the blood clot in his brain that was causing the stroke, but it didnt work as well as doctors had hoped. Dr. Ajeet Gordhan asked whether he could use the Solitaire device to remove the clot. Rice agreed. I figured Lets do whatever we need to do. The procedure was performed … Continue reading →