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New Approaches to Autism
Television News Service/Medical Breakthroughs
© Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc. July 2001
(Ivanhoe Newswire) —
The developmental disorder autism is characterized by three core symptoms.
Traditionally doctors use one drug to treat all of them. Now researchers in
New York are taking a different approach they hope will help more children.
Like every mother, Jane
Neill-Hancock wants the best for her daughter. Her wishes sound simple.
"I'd like to see her have a friend and even know what friendship
is," she says.
Shinae is autistic. The
older she gets, the more severe her symptoms. Neill-Hancock says, "She
becomes very focused on something, and she can't give it up. She has a lot
of trouble with frustration and with anger."
Experimental diets and
numerous drugs have not shown the improvements Neill-Hancock anticipated.
Now, she's hoping the antidepressant Prozac will do the trick.
 Psychiatrist Eric Hollander, M.D., of Mt. Sinai School of Medicine
in New York, N.Y., has seen around 50 percent of children improve their
functioning with Prozac but says it's not the answer for everyone.
"Our approach in
terms of treating individuals with autism is to break the disorder down
into its different symptom domains and then address those different symptom
domains with appropriate medication," says Dr. Hollander.
The anti-seizure
medication Depakote is under study to treat aggression. For cognitive
difficulties, the psychosis drug olanzapine is expected to bring
improvements.
Dr. Hollander says,
"Just modifying those key target symptoms can have a dramatic impact
in terms of their quality of life."
 Neill-Hancock learned not to hope for a dramatic change, subtle
improvements will do. She says, "[I hope it] will be easier for her to
deal with things and maybe to focus a little bit more."
Her ultimate goal is to
one day see Shinae able to cope with others around her.
All the drugs in the
study have been tested for safety in children and are approved for use by
children over the age of 5.
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