Right up front I want to apologize for the length of this email. I was on
vacation last week and came back to a total of about 800 emails over last
week and this one. I have narrowed it down to only 10% for your reading
enjoyment. Scott


1. Parents Of Autistic Children - Northern Virginia (POAC-NoVA) Chapter
invites you to attend the workshop on Saturday, 22 April. The workshop
will be held in the Midrash Room of the Jewish Community Center of Northern
Virginia from 1:00 to 4:00. The Center is at 8900 Little River Turnpike,
Fairfax, VA 22031. Their phone number is (703) 323-0880. The speaker is
David Hamrick, a nationally-known keynote speaker at a number of events over
the past few years on "Living with the Challenges of Autism". He has gone
from a non-verbal child at age 4 to a college graduate, showing that there
is hope for all our kids with high-functioning autism. One of his previous
keynote presentations is at
<blocked::BLOCKED::blocked::blocked::http://www.asw4autism.org/Hamrick.htm>
http://www.asw4autism.org/Hamrick.htm. There is no need to RSVP, just show
up for this FREE presentation. However, we recommend that you come early,
since there will only be seats for about 80 folks. POAC-NoVA is covering
all the costs to host David and charging no fees to permit the maximum
possible attendance for this impressive speaker.

As an individual with high-functioning autism, David Hamrick will discuss
what autism is and how it impacts society. A list of intervention
strategies for improving a child's behavior or social situation will be
covered, as well as actions that should be avoided based on what worked best
for the child. Following the brief overview of autism, Mr. Hamrick will
discuss the progress he has made in school, college, the social realms, and
independent living. In addition, the presentation will cover topics such as
the following: special interests, early intervention, transitions,
employment, and visual stimuli. This session is highly recommended for
parents of newly diagnosed children on the autism spectrum and professionals
who would like to have an insider's view on autism. Come learn how autism
does not always interfere with a person's success in life! David Hamrick is
a 26-year-old man with high-functioning autism. He has recently completed
his Master's of Science degree in meteorology from North Carolina State
University in Raleigh. His careers plans include being a forecaster with
the National Weather Service and educating the public about severe weather.
In addition to his academic pursuits, Mr. Hamrick is also very active in the
autism community. He has been an active board member of The Autism Program
of Virginia and has served as an officer of a Virginia autism society
chapter in Newport News. Since 1999, he has been a frequent presenter at
autism conferences throughout Virginia and neighboring states about how
autism has personally influenced him. Mr. Hamrick is also developing a
website about his personal experiences with autism and how parents and
professionals can better understand the disorder and how to cope with
difficult circumstances when they arise.

2 Marty Murphy, an adult with autism will be presenting a witty and
informative insight into the mind of autism. It will be at the GMU Verizon
Auditorium in 10900 University Blvd, Manassas, VA 20110 on Saturday, 22
April 2006 from 1 to 4 pm. Cost is $15 if you pre-register by 12 April and
$20 at the door. RSVP to Andrea Kramer, ASA-NV Executive Director at 703
495-8444 or andreakramer_su@...
<blocked::mailto:andreakramer_su@...> for more info.

3 Wide Open Doors Conference, 2006, Woolridge Road, Church, Moseley, VA
23120 (Chesterfield County, just southwest of Richmond) One out of five
Americans has a disability, but a surprising number of community
institutions are not prepared to welcome them. The Through the Roof Ministry
of Woolridge Road Church seeks to change that. At its Wide Open Doors
Conference on April 22nd & 23rd, nationally-recognized speakers Joel
Sonnenberg and Diane Anderson plus a diverse selection of workshop
presenters and exhibitors will provide information on a variety of
disability topics including accessibility, speech, autism, IEPs, Medicaid
Waivers , education, communication, assistive technology, and related
services and supports for people with disabilities, their families and
friends, professionals, and community leaders. For more information on the
conference and to learn how your community can be more inclusive and
welcoming to people with disabilities, please visit the conference web-page
at <http://www.woolridgeroad.org/Default.aspx?tabid=70>
http://www.woolridgeroad.org/Default.aspx?tabid=70 or contact Wide Open
Doors Conference coordinator Tammy Burns at tburns@...
<mailto:tburns@...> or 804-639-4777.

4. Autism Awareness Weekend on 22 and 23 April: 2 DAYS OF FREE EDUCATIONAL
GUEST SPEAKERS & TRAININGS at Union Hospital, Elkton, MD. Main Entrance
Meeting Rooms on Left. Parking by College - Shuttle Service provided. This
training will introduce parents and educators to the causes of anxiety for
an individual with autism. It will also discuss multiple
strategies for dealing with anxiety within this complex disorder.
Questions: Call Karen Mackie 410-620-9945 or <mailto:cecilautism@...>
cecilautism@....

5. Anne Arundel County Chapter of the Autism Society of America meeting on
Tuesday, April 25th at 7:00 pm for a free presentation about home and
community safety issues led by Scott Campbell, former President of Parents
of Autistic Children of Northern Virginia. He is the parent of a nonverbal
child with autism, and he has a strong interest in safety issues for
individuals with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. He has begun autism awareness
training programs for first responder personnel in his local area. The
meeting will be held at the Ruth Eason School, 648 Old Mill Road in
Millersville, MD. Parents and other family members, as well as
professionals and service providers, are invited to to join us on April
25th. For further information, please call (410) 923-8800 or go to
<http://www.aaccasa.org> www.aaccasa.org.

6. FCPS Grand meeting of PTA special ed reps, ACSD reps and parent
ombudsmen at the next Fairfax County Council of PTA's special education
committee meeting on Tuesday, April 25 from 7 pm in the Assembly Room of the
Dunn Loring administrative building (same building as the PRC), Dunn Loring,
VA. Our goal for this meeting is to create an opportunity for the parent
ombudsmen, ACSD members and special education PTA representatives from each
cluster to get together and work on common issues. At a minimum, we hope to
create active communication networks to funnel information back and forth
from the parents in our schools to the parents who represent them. The
agenda is to meet briefly for introductions as a large group then break up
by clusters for an hour or so. We will then invite one person from each
group to share with the larger body any ideas that you have generated.
Contact Margaret Fisher at jrosenthal2@... <mailto:jrosenthal2@...>
with any questions.

7 Free Applied Verbal Behavior Information Session and a Celebrating
Families Event that Trellis Services, Inc., an autism waiver provider, is
holding. The event will take place on Saturday, 4/29 between 3 and 5 p.m.,
at Trellis' Hunt Valley Clinic, 150 Lakefront Drive, Cockeysville, MD
21030. Please RSVP by 4/26 to Teasha Grant at 410-785-3846 or
<mailto:teasha@....> teasha@.... In a
related story, Trellis Services, Inc is offering Summer Scholarships in FREE
Introductions to the Verbal Behavior Approach to learners diagnosed with
ASD, aged 18 mos-6 years. Learners will develop communication and play
skills in a motivating and nurturing environment in weekly sessions, held
mornings in June and July at Love to Learn Clinic, Cockeysville MD.
Complete intake found at www.trellisservices.com (please write VB summer
scholarship at the top. For more information please call 410-785-3845 or
e-mail <mailto:renee@...> renee@....
Limited openings. Application Deadline: May 12th. Completion of ABBLS
assessment required to service initiation, available at cost ($35) at the
clinic.

8 Abilities Network's Family Empowerment Network announces a series of
Special Education Workshops presented by Parent's Place of Maryland. These
will be held at Abilities Network in Towson, MD every Wednesday in May. To
receive more information or to RSVP, please contact Ann Walker at
410-828-7700, ext. 1220. Workshops are:

May 3: Basic Rights in Special Education Learn basic advocacy skills along
with procedural safeguards for students in Special Education, 10:00 am -
12:00 noon

May 10: IDEA 2004, What's changed? Come and see how the reauthorization has
changed IDEA, 10:00 am - 12:00 noon.

May 17: Dispute Resolution, What do you do when things go wrong? This
workshop will detail how to resolve complaints, 10:00 am - 12:00 noon.

May 24: Transition Planning, How to plan for the future, and get functional
academics into the IEP. Students involved in their Transition planning are
welcome to attend with their parents, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

May 31: Components of a Successful IEP, Learn what makes an IEP work. Bring
your child's IEP to discuss with the experts, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

9. The Howard County Autism Society is having a Visual and Behavioral
Interventions Workshop for children with Autism. The full-day workshop
features Dr. Robin Allen PhD, Behavior Specialist with 25 years experience
helping individuals with autism spectrum disorders on Saturday, May 6th,
2006 at 1st Presbyterian Church of Howard County (Rt 29 and 108 east) from
9:00am-4:00pm. Fee is $50.00 ( Materials, Lunch and Snacks included). The
Howard County Autism Society will offer a subsidy to families who need it.
Contact Kathleen Bovard, for more information at
<mailto:Bovie4@...> Bovie4@.... Register online at
www.howard-autism.org click on the Visual and Behavioral Inventions with
Robin Allen Box. Some things covered on her agenda will be Schedules(Taking
Supplements/Medicine), Self-Care/Grooming (Potty Training), Setting
Expectations,Coping Options and Reinforcement Programs.

10. Washington D.C. Chapter Meeting of Cure Autism Now on Monday, May 8th
from 6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. for Dr. Sophia Colamarino, Cure Autism Now's
Science Director, presentation on the underlying biology associated with
autism and its significance for autism research. It is at National 4H
Conference Center (for directions,
<blocked::http://www.4hcenter.org/contactus_directions.html> click here),
7100 Connecticut Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD 20815. Additionally, you will
have the opportunity to learn more about how you can make a difference in
the lives of all people affected by autism by participating in the local
Cure Autism Now and WALK NOW Washington, D.C. events. To register for this
event,
<blocked::http://www.kintera.org/autogen/home/default.asp?ievent=173247ttp:/
/> click here or contact Tracey MacDonald at tmacdonald@...
<mailto:tmacdonald@...> or (888) 8AUTISM ext. 728. There is
no fee to attend this event.

11. For Autism Awareness month, POAC-NoVA is conducting a campaign that
encourages parents of autistic children to go out and visit their children's
school programs and share their experience. April is a great month to go
out and visit your child at school. It is the perfect time to plan ahead
for Extended School Year (Summer) and Fall services. Use the visit as an
opportunity to monitor your child's progress during this school year. Also
use the visit to get insights on how to synchronize interventions between
home and school. To help you further, POAC is providing a checklist/guide
for your visit. Use the attached checklist at your discretion. If you do
not receive the attached checklist, please contact us at
<BLOCKED::mailto:springtuneup@...>
springtuneupcampaign@.... For the campaign, contact your child's
teacher or principal to arrange the visit. Tell us, in a one page report,
your experience regarding the visit to school. Folks who have visited their
child's school program recently, don't need to schedule another visit. Send
us a report from your last visit. POAC promises to keep all information
from your school trip report CONFIDENTIAL. Reports can be emailed to
<BLOCKED::mailto:springtuneup@...>
springtuneupcampaign@... or sent by mail to 3927 Old Lee Highway,
Suite 102-C, Fairfax, VA 22030-2422. DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION HAS BEEN
EXTENDED: May 30th, 2006.



12. From NAAR and Autism Speaks. Things are moving along as we get ready
for our fantastic 2nd Baltimore
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=LKrISjVEQl-5Isqu6Hlk1g..> Walk For
Autism Research on Sunday, June 4, 2006. We are now up to 39
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=SHBdYMCCgUwdXtW5tT4kDw..> teams already
registered for the Walk and we have raised more than $100,000 in the
Baltimore-Washington region! Please join us by starting a
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=jM9XNM5h3f9FKFI9FmDZkg..> team, joining
a <http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=7rFosv0O4fH9GDQUg84K-w..> team, or
registering to be an individual
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=E2-QCDEER2YZIehxABmmtw..> walker. If
you can't make the Walk, you can still participate by simply making a
donation <http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=PA0pJqFI3YXPaFMHc2OFog..> to
the event.

During this April, Autism Awareness Month, we are in the big push to raise
lots of money. If you will be visiting family over the holidays, tell them
about the Walk for Autism Research and ask for their help. Remember, your
child is their grandson, nephew or cousin and they may want to join you at
the Walk. Now is the time to send your emails, cards, and letters to
everyone you know asking for their support. How can they help? Well, you
can ask them to join you as a walker (and fund-raiser) for the Walk, ask
them to make a donation - either online or by sending you a check, or ask
them to help out as a volunteer
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=eaG7IXjbBK4WbaWrwEWRXA..> on Walk Day.
We need it all: teambuilding, donation solicitation, and recruitment are
critical.

We have lots of special events planned during April. You can help find the
missing pieces for Autism Speaks by buying a Puzzle Piece at TJ
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=NMC4BHhy8Z8VnFNISac3Dg..> Maxx, dropping
change in the cash box at Chicken Out Rotisseries
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=KBRmVK5WBEwyCcB29U-Vhw..> , or Building
a <http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=H0batlDNwv8RPgyzujON8w..> Bear.
Planning to order flowers for mom for Mother's Day? We have a new partner
in ProFlowers <http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=fO8VgHSLwBz58HHfEEx97A..>
who will donate $10 per order to Autism Speaks. Autism Speaks will have a
booth at the "World of Possibilities
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=RAfCg-96sSjd-UpIqI6SAg..> " Autism Day
on May 21 at the Timonium Fairgrounds. Are you hosting an event to support
your team? Have you organized a "Dine to Donate" evening at a local
restaurant? Planned a mini-walk around the nursery school? Let me know
<mailto:dglass@...> how I can help spread the word.

See if your school or office will do a special assembly about autism. We
would love to have school and corporate teams join the cause. As a special
incentive, each school that registers a team will receive one copy of the
new "Autism Acceptance Book" for the school library. Please let me know if
you need any <http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=pCPnGM8Y6nqkAbgqPT_0UQ..>
brochures or posters. I am happy to send you enough for your whole school!


If you have already started receiving donations (good job!) you may hold on
to them until Walk Day, June 4, or forward them along to the address below.
Please be sure checks are written out to Autism Speaks (or NAAR) and that
you write the Team Name on the memo line so I can properly allocate the
credit. If you enjoy working on the computer, go ahead and enter the
donations you've received as "offline" donations under the Team Progress
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=CdW3JFmF-82HLtWVeynZuA..> section. We
will reconcile the figures when we receive the checks.

For more info, contact Dale S. Glass, MS, National Capital Regional Director
at 301-519-0770, or visit
<http://www.autismwalk.org/site/R?i=H4V_yeS_Mf-z4_lBATtd9A..>
http://www.autismwalk.org/baltimore or <http://www.autismwalk.org/wdc>
http://www.autismwalk.org/wdc.



13. The Penn State National Autism Conference is on 31 July to 4 August at
The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel in State College, PA. Check out
the http://www.outreach.psu.edu/em/Autism/default-home.htm
<http://www.outreach.psu.edu/em/Autism/default-home.htm> link for more
info. As a reminder, PA parents attend free; PA professionals pay $100
registration. Out-of-state professional pay $200 and Out-of-state parents
pay $50. Breakfasts and lunches are included in the price.



14. Caregiver Grants Program, February 1 - May 1. Virginia has a grant
program which provides up to $500.00 for caregivers who provide assistance
to a relative who has a physical or mental impairment. Certain qualifying
conditions must be met, including limits on the income of the caregiver.
Applications for the year 2005 must be submitted no earlier than Feb 1, 2006
and not later than May 1, 2006. To download the application, go to
<BLOCKED::http://www.dss.virginia.gov/family/as/caregiver.cgi>
www.dss.virginia.gov/family/as/caregiver.cgi. The application may also be
requested by calling 703-324-5485 locally or 1-877-648-2817 in Richmond and
leaving a message.



15. "University of Texas study draws link between mercury releases and
autism" dated 22 March 2005 in Capital Reports at
<http://www.caprep.com/0305044.htm> http://www.caprep.com/0305044.htm.



"A study released by the University of Texas Health Science Center at San
Antonio shows a significant increase in the rates of special education
students and autism rates associated with increases in environmentally
released mercury. According to the study, on average, for each 1000 lb of
environmentally released mercury there was a 43% increase in the rate of
special education services and a 61% increase in the rate of autism. The
association between environmentally released mercury and special education
rates were fully mediated by increased autism rates. This ecological study
suggests the need for further research regarding the association between
environmentally released mercury and developmental disorders such as autism.
These results have implications for policy planning and cost analysis. The
study compared mercury totals reported for 2001 in the 254 Texas counties to
the rate of autism and special education services in nearly 1,200 Texas
school districts. The districts, which range from urban to small metro to
rural, enroll 4 million Texas children. "The main finding is that for every
1,000 pounds of environmentally released mercury, we saw a 17 percent
increase in autism rates," said lead author Raymond F. Palmer, Ph.D.,
associate professor in the Health Science Center's department of family and
community medicine. Large-scale mercury exposures such as accidental spills
long have been implicated with developmental disabilities, but this study is
among the first to examine the relationship between potentially chronic,
low-dose mercury exposure and a developmental disorder such as autism, Dr.
Palmer said. Using statistical modeling, the researchers showed that
increases in the rate of special education services were associated with
higher mercury release levels. However, "it is the increase in autism that
explains this relationship" in Texas, Dr. Palmer said. ..."



16. "Learning to Live with Autism: Mother of Two Autistic Boys Offers
Valuable Tips to Affected Families" dated 2 April 2006 in press release on
the PRNewswire at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/4/prweb366614.htm
<http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/4/prweb366614.htm> .

"As the number of children diagnosed with autism increases every year, it
has become a serious concern for young families all over the country. In
fact, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Education and
other governmental agencies, autism is growing at an alarming rate of 10-17
percent every year. The Center for Disease Control estimates that as many as
1.5 million people in the country are afflicted with autism. While much of
the discussion about autism in the media focuses on the potential causes of
the disorder, there is little discussion about families affected by autism.
Parents whose children are diagnosed with autism often go through a great
deal of confusion and a high level of stress. Raising a child with autism
can be very demanding and parents often find themselves overwhelmed with the
responsibility involved. Families often find themselves limited by what they
can and cannot do and this can lead to feelings of frustration and even
despair. As the mother of two autistic boys, Kathy Labosh wants to help
other families with autistic children by sharing her own experiences.
"Families sometimes feel like there is no where to turn for help," says
Labosh, author of The Child with Autism Goes to Town, The Child with Autism
at Home, and The Child with Autism Goes to Florida (Labosh Publishing,
2005). "I want to share what I have learned with affected families in hopes
that it will make their lives a little bit easier." To accomplish her
mission, Labosh founded Labosh Publishing which produces tip booklets for
families. In these booklets, Labosh gives advice for all facets of everyday
life with children affected by autism. "It is my desire for these tips to
serve as trail markers for families with autistic children as they venture
out into their communities with their children in tow," says Labosh. Her
booklets cover a wide range of important topics. She shares how to prepare
for family gatherings, what kinds of toys or presents children with autism
like, how to keep them happy on long car or plane rides, what to do at the
grocery store, and good ways to administer medicine. As many families do
feel limited by what they can do with their autistic children, Labosh wants
people to realize that they don't have to feel so limited. "You can go and
do just about anything you want to do with a child with autism, you just
need to go about it differently and take your time building up your skills,"
says Labosh. She even has a booklet on visiting Florida. The booklet, The
Child with Autism Goes to Florida, evaluates all of the rides at all major
Florida theme parks for sensory issues and their appropriateness for
autistic children. In addition to offering practical advice and important
tips for parents, Labosh's booklets offer hope for parents and families
learning to cope with autism. "You really can enjoy a full and active life
in your community," says Labosh."

17. "Lawsuit claims Knox Co. kindergartner was assaulted in class" dated 4
April 2006 by Adam Longo from WATE4 News.com at
http://www.wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=4784908
<http://www.wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=4784908&nav=menu7_2_1>
&nav=menu7_2_1.

"Civil rights violations and assault are just two of the allegations being
made in a federal lawsuit that will be filed Wednesday involving the
treatment of a Knox County kindergartner. The claim is that a young,
autistic girl was restrained by a school administrator in a classroom at
Spring Hill Elementary School in October 2005. Tara Mallory claims her
seven-year-old daughter, Brooke Mallory, left school that day shaken and
physically bruised. It was only her third day of kindergarten and also her
last. "In my wildest dreams, it never occurred to me that they would hurt
her and humiliate her the way they did," Tara says. The suit alleges the
incident started when Brooke's teacher left the classroom for Wal-Mart. Two
other students tried to change her clothing while two other administrators
were in the classroom. Brooke panicked and school administrator Judy
Pickering entered the classroom and allegedly restrained her. "I was
enraged. I was hurt," Tara says. "I'm the one who's supposed to know when
bad people are around and I didn't see it coming." Spring Hill Principal
Lynn Draper says, "It was investigated internally by several departments in
the school system and it was found there was no violation committed." Tara
pulled Brooke out of school and tried to set things right. "I've contacted
school board members. I've written letters, gone through the entire chain of
command in Knox County. I've been dismissed and treated disrespectfully."
Tara also hired attorney Mike Shipwash who says, "I was astonished that the
school system would let someone like her child fall between the cracks."
Now, a lawsuit in federal court alleges false imprisonment, claiming that
Brooke being restrained for 20 minutes was intentional, reckless, outrageous
and inappropriate. ..."

18. "FDA approves first attention deficit patch" dated 6 April 2006 from
USA Today at http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-04-06-adhd-patch_x.htm
<http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-04-06-adhd-patch_x.htm> .

"The FDA on Thursday approved the first skin patch to treat attention
deficit hyperactivity disorder in children. The patch, which is designed to
be worn for 9 hours, contains methylphenidate, which has been shown to help
children with ADHD. It is the same stimulant that is in Ritalin. The patch
is made by Noven Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Miami. In December, a Food and
Drug Administration panel of independent experts voted to recommend that the
patch's label encourage its use as an alternative treatment for children
ages 6 to 12 with ADHD, meaning doctors should prescribe it only if taking
pills is too difficult for a child. Unlike pill forms of the drug, the
patch can be removed if it causes side effects. Noven Pharmaceuticals in
2003 submitted a 12-hour version of the patch to the FDA. The agency
rejected it and recommended that Noven test a nine-hour version. That is the
version approved for use Thursday. U.K.-based Shire Pharmaceuticals Group
PLC co-developed the patch with Noven Pharmaceuticals."

19. "Schools must inform students of NCLB rights" dated 6 April 2006 from
CNN.com at
<http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/04/06/education.secretary.ap/index.html>
http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/04/06/education.secretary.ap/index.html.

"The nation's top education official warned Wednesday that states may lose
federal money if they fail to inform parents about their children's rights
to free tutoring or to transfer out of struggling schools. .S. Education
Secretary Margaret Spellings told an audience the agency will investigate
how well states are promoting participation in such programs, offered under
the federal No Child Left Behind law. "We want to ensure that districts are
living up to their responsibilities to notify parents about their options in
a timely and easy-to-understand way," Spellings said in a speech at the
Greater Allen A.M.E. Cathedral of New York, in Queens. "And there are a
number of steps we can take to enforce these provisions, including
withholding federal funds." Two education advocacy groups filed complaints
last month against two Southern California school districts, claiming they
violated the law's requirement to offer free tutoring. The law promises
tutoring to poor families if their children attend schools that get federal
poverty aid but have not made steady progress for three years. It also lets
families transfer children out of schools that have not met progress goals
for two consecutive years. Critics say enforcement of those provisions has
been lax. The government's numbers appear to bear that out. The Education
Department has found that of the 4 million students eligible to transfer
from schools, only 38,000 do -- fewer than 1 percent. The department also
says that only 11 percent to 17 percent of eligible students nationwide are
using the free tutoring. ..."

20. "Autism parents allege CDC cover-up" dated 6 April 2006 by Jeffery
Young from The Hill at
http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/TheExecutive/040606_autis
m.html
<http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/TheExecutive/040606_auti
sm.html> .

"Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conspired
to cover up information linking vaccines to developmental disorders in
children, organizations representing parents of autistic children allege.
The advocacy groups have long contended that mercury and a mercury-based
substance called thimerosal, which were commonly used as preservatives in
vaccines, cause some children to develop autism or similar disorders. The
autism groups sponsored a full-page ad in today's USA Today that reads, "If
you caused a 6,000% increase in autism, wouldn't you try to cover it up,
too?" The ad alleges that the CDC "knows that the ambitious immunization
schedule begun in the 1990s, nearly tripling the amount of mercury injected
into our children, created an epidemic of autism in America." The
organizations are holding a rally and press conference this morning to
highlight their charges. Reps. Dan Burton (R-Ind), Dave Weldon (R-Fla.) and
Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) are scheduled to speak at the event in the park
next to the Russell Senate Office Building. The CDC, other federal
authorities and even the American Academy of Pediatrics contest this theory
and say there is no scientific evidence that vaccinations contribute to
autism. Federal authorities also argue that the benefits of immunization
against diseases such as mumps outweigh the risk of vaccines. Autism groups
say that one out of every 166 children has an autistic disorder. The CDC's
website says, "While it is clear that more children than ever before are
being classified as" autistic, the agency does not know why, nor does it
know exactly how many children have autistic disorders. Based on internal
e-mails written by officials at the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) and others, the parents groups contend that federal authorities knew
the vaccines were causing autism but failed to act. ..."

21. "CDC Statement regarding autism-related advertisement in USA Today"
dated 6 April 2006 from the CDC at
<http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/s060406.htm>
http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/s060406.htm.

"We know that autism is a heart-wrenching situation for many families and
many children and it presents special challenges that we would certainly
want to prevent and do anything we could to avoid. When it comes to the
nation's immunization recommendations, the CDC and Public Health Service are
always guided by one overriding goal and interest-all our recommendations
are designed to protect the health and well being of all children. We are
very disappointed in an advertisement that appears in today's edition of USA
Today. The advertisement completely mischaracterizes the efforts of CDC,
the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Institute of Medicine, and others to
protect the health and well being of the nation's children. CDC has
sponsored multiple public meetings and scientific reviews, we've involved
numerous outside organizations and experts in our research and
recommendations, and we've made continued investments in research designed
to discover factors which may place children at risk for developing autism.
Importantly, if levels of thimerosal found in vaccines, including influenza
vaccines, were associated with harm, CDC, the Public Health Service, and the
nation's physicians (e.g., the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American
Medical Association, and American Academy of Family Physicians) would not
recommend their use. We've made substantial progress in removing thimerosal
from vaccines - and have done so without placing infants and children at
risk for potentially serious vaccine preventable diseases. As we continue
in our efforts to further reduce the use of thimerosal in vaccines, we must
also ensure, particularly in the case of influenza, that our efforts do not
create serious undesirable outcomes, such as vaccine shortages that would
place people, including children, at risk. History has shown that
disruptions in vaccine supplies can render the population more vulnerable to
diseases we know we can prevent. ..."

22. "Study Denouncing Autism Epidemic Misses the Mark- ASA Calls for
Studies Benefiting Families Now" dated 6 April 2006 by Kate Ranta from the
Autism Society of America at
<http://www.autism-society.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8553&JServSess
ionIdr011=vxxls3rjd1.app24a>
http://www.autism-society.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8553&JServSessi
onIdr011=vxxls3rjd1.app24a

."The Autism Society of America (ASA), the oldest and largest grassroots
organization serving the entire autism community, in response to a study by
Dr. Paul Shattuck appearing in next week's edition of Pediatrics entitled
"Diagnostic Substitution and Changing Autism Prevalence," says the study
takes the focus away from the real issue: autism is affecting millions of
people and families who need help today. "We need to move away from a
dialogue about prevalence," said ASA President & CEO Lee Grossman. "Whether
it's 1 in 166 children or 1 in 1,166 being diagnosed with autism, each and
every one of those affected today and in the future must be helped."
According to the study, the rise in number of autism diagnoses is not
evidence of an epidemic, but shows that schools are diagnosing autism more
often. Shattuck claims that autism rates have not increased over the last
two decades, and children identified by U.S. school special education
programs as mentally retarded or learning disabled have declined with the
rise in autism cases between 1994 and 2003, suggesting a diagnostic
substitution. Shattuck says there may be unknown environmental triggers
behind autism, and his research suggests the past decade's rise in autism
cases is a result of poor labeling. ASA Board of Directors Chair Cathy
Pratt, Ph.D. said that "in 30 years of working in the autism community,
certain realities have become increasingly clear. More individuals are
receiving a diagnosis on the spectrum. The needs of these individuals and
their families continue to grow. And finally, the lack of options and
resources place an incredible stress on all and threaten the future of these
individuals. Any study that diverts our focus or that diminishes the
perception of this need hurts us all. I know of no family who has enough
resources for their child, nor any adult who has all the supports he or she
needs." ..."

23. "Weak brain links 'explain autism- The difficulties people with autism
have in relating to others could be due to poor communication between brain
areas, scientists suggest'" dated 9 April 2006 from BBC News at
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4888528.stm
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4888528.stm> or
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/4888528.stm
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/4888528.stm> .

"It may explain why they do not interact well, as the weak links mean they
benefit less from social situations. It had been thought that their lack of
social skills was due to abnormalities in particular brain areas. The study
in Neuroimage, carried out by University of London researchers, compared
brain scans of 32 people. The researchers took brain scans of 16 people
with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and above-average IQs, as well as those
of 16 unaffected volunteers. They were shown four images on the screen -
two of houses and two of faces. They were then asked to concentrate on
either the faces or houses and decide if they were identical. Scans showed
there were marked differences in the brain activity of the two groups. In
the control group, paying attention to pictures of faces caused a
significant increase in brain activity. But for people with ASD, paying
attention to faces made no impact at all on the brain, explaining their lack
of interest in faces. Both groups had the same reaction to houses. Dr
Geoff Bird, at the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, who led the
research, said: "The standard view of social problems in ASD is that there
is a problem in the part of the brain that processes faces. "Our research
suggests that this is not the real problem - it seems to be that paying
attention to faces doesn't lead to the normal increase in brain activity.
"This is because the face-processing areas of the brain are not well
connected to those parts of the brain that control attention - such as the
frontal and parietal regions. ..."

24. "Fishing proves therapeutic for autistic kids" dated 9 April 2006 by
Ben Sutherly from the Dayton Daily News at
<http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0409fishin
g.html>
http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0409fishing
.html.

"Joe Belanich IV could have passed for a jumping bean Saturday on the pier
at Delco Park's pond - not because he was moving to keep warm in the brisk,
blustery weather, but because he was hopping with excitement. He bite the
bobber," 4-year-old Joe said moments after catching his first fish. "The
bobber went under the water to catch the fish." "I think having three
doughnuts might be adding to the excitement," said his mother, Candie
Belanich. Joe, who has autism, was one of 75 people who fished Saturday as
part of an outing held by the Dayton Aspergers Resource Network, or DARN.
Asperger's syndrome is a high-functioning form of autism. Fishing calls for
both calm and concentration, making it therapeutic for children and
teenagers with autism, said Ed Webb, one of the outing's organizers and
father of Zach, 13, who has the condition. "This gets our kids away from
the video games," he said. About 385 families in 12 southwestern Ohio
counties provide knowledge and support to each other through DARN, which
Audrey Schilb founded in 1999. "All of us know what it's like to have a
child who's differently abled," said Schilb, whose son Alex, 14, has the
condition. The group also helps parents handle bullying by their children's
classmates and misunderstandings resulting from ignorance about their
children's disorder. Schilb said people with Asperger's are verbal and
teachable. In fact, those with the disorder have normal or above-average
IQs, but have trouble with the nuances of social skills. For example, many
don't understand idioms because they take them literally. ..."

25. "Test Protocols Are Student Records" dated 10 April 2006 from the
Special Ed Law Blog at
<http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2006/04/test_protocols_.html#more>
http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2006/04/test_protocols_.html#more.

"Test protocols are the answers provided to educational testing, and
explanations and interpretations of test questions even if the answers are
integrated with the test question. The legal question which frequently
arises is whether test protocols are "student records" and therefore,
subject to parental inspection and copying. Schools almost reflexively
answer "no" to this question and parents are left to fight this response. A
recent hearing officer decision from Illinois, School District U-46, 45
IDELR 74 (2005) provides some sound reasoning for the parents' position on
this question. In U-46 among the issues before the hearing officer were
whether the child had been properly evaluated. The school district took the
position that test protocols were either exempt from disclosure under the
state mental health code or under Federal copyright laws. As to the mental
health code argument, the hearing officer rejected this argument because the
state law permitted hearing officers to order disclosure, disclosure was
expressly permitted between psychologists and to the extent the state law
was in conflict with IDEA it would need to give way. While the school's
argument is premised on Illinois law, many states' mental health codes are
similarly worded, so this reasoning may be useful in refuting the same or
similar arguments. As to the copyright argument, the hearing officer
rejected this position because the school failed to point to any specific
provision that prohibited disclosure of test protocols. Since this argument
is based upon Federal law this part of the decision should have application
in other states. ..."

26. "Success can be measured in emotions" dated 10 April 2006 from the
Miami Herald at
<http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/business/special_packages/business_mon
day/14292530.htm>
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/business/special_packages/business_mond
ay/14292530.htm.

"Barry Nelson is making a unique product for a unique audience, so it's only
fair that he measures success in a unique way. His company, Buddy Bike,
makes an innovative tandem bicycle that lets the rear rider steer. The setup
is particularly well-suited for parents who want to cycle with their special
needs children but also need to keep a close eye on them (something that
requires dangerous neck-craning and taking one's eyes off the road on a
standard tandem cycle). Since the Golden Beach resident started marketing
the bikes last October, he has only sold 50 but he's rewarded in other ways.
''The people that are most appreciative of this are the parents of special
needs children. . . . To see the smile of the parents and the child makes it
all worthwhile,'' he said. ``But so far success has been more emotional than
financial.'' ..."

27. "States push for bans in children's vaccines. But leading medical
groups are pushing back" dated 10 April 2006 by Myron Levin from the Los
Angeles Times at
<http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-vaccine10apr10,1,67309
53.story?coll=la-headlines-nation&ctrack=1&cset=true>
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-vaccine10apr10,1,673095
3.story?coll=la-headlines-nation&ctrack=1&cset=true or
<http://tinyurl.com/jc8ba> http://tinyurl.com/jc8ba.

"As lawmakers in about 20 states press for bans on mercury in children's
vaccines, they are meeting stiff resistance from influential health and
medical organizations, including groups that get substantial funding from
drug makers and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Seven
states have adopted the anti-mercury bills - California being one of the
first. California's law, passed in 2004 and to take effect July 1, will
prohibit shots with more than a trace of thimerosal for pregnant women and
children younger than 3. In recent weeks, similar bills have been defeated
in at least five states. The push for legislation comes long after the
uproar over continued use of thimerosal, a mercury-based antibacterial
agent, appeared to subside in 1999, when manufacturers began phasing it out
of routine pediatric vaccines. But the controversy flared anew when flu
shots containing thimerosal were added to the childhood immunization
schedule in 2004 and the CDC refused to recommend thimerosal-free shots for
infants and pregnant women. Angered by the CDC's refusal - and fearing a
backslide into more thimerosal use - state lawmakers and anti-mercury
advocates began pushing for outright thimerosal bans. The legislation faces
opposition from groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the
Immunization Action Coalition - a stance that anti-mercury advocates say
defies logic. "We're trying to get [mercury] out of the environment," said
Marilyn Rasmussen, a Washington state senator and sponsor of a thimerosal
bill that was signed into law last month. "Why would we be injecting it
into babies? We've got to be smarter than that." ..."

27. "Debate Flares Over Vaccines, Autism Link" dated 10 April 2006 by Todd
Zwillich from WebMD on FOX News.com at
<http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,191167,00.html>
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,191167,00.html or
<http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/529583>
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/529583 or
<http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=60959>
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=60959.

"Debate over a possible tie between mercury-containing vaccines and
<http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,191167,00.html#> autism flared up this
week as activist groups launched a campaign accusing federal health agencies
and prominent researchers of manipulating scientific findings on the link.
Some parents of autistic children have long blamed vaccines containing the
preservative thimerosal for an alarming rise in the disorder. Thimerosal
contains a type of mercury. A series of reports by the Institute of Medicine
(IOM) ending in 2004 concluded no evidence could be found linking the
vaccines to neurological diseases, including autism. But groups this week
mounted a campaign to publicize previously undisclosed transcripts and
emails that they say point to efforts by the CDC to manipulate the IOM's
scientific conclusions on the safety of vaccines containing thimerosal. The
groups accuse the CDC of trying to defend a long-held policy promoting
childhood vaccinations. "In the interest of protecting the immunization
program, they forgot about child safety. They are continuing that pattern of
behavior and denial that thimerosal causes harm," Bobbie Manning, vice
president of Advocates for Children's Health Affected by Mercury, tells
WebMD. According to the CDC, all vaccines recommended for children are
available in thimerosal-free versions. But some parents say millions of
previous exposures helped caused a spike in autism cases since the 1980s.
..."

28. "At Odds Over Anthrax- The Federal Government Wants To Stockpile
Anthrax Vaccines To Protect Americans From A Biological Attack; Critics
Question Costs, Wonder If Effort Is Even Necessary" dated 10 April 2006 by
THOMAS D. WILLIAMS from the Hartford Courant at
http://www.courant.com/news/nationworld/hc-vaccine.artapr10,0,4444158.story
<http://www.courant.com/news/nationworld/hc-vaccine.artapr10,0,4444158.story
> .

"Weaponized anthrax killed five Americans in 2001, yet the federal
government is coming under criticism for its pursuit of vaccines to protect
the United States from future attacks. The government has committed to
investing more than $1 billion to develop, buy and stockpile anthrax
vaccines - fully one-quarter of a special fund created by President Bush for
medical countermeasures against chemical, biological, radiological or
nuclear attack on the United States. Some critics, however, insist that the
investment is misguided at best. There is no evidence that foreign
terrorists are capable of a large-scale anthrax assault, they say, and there
are other biological agents terrorists might find as easy to use. In any
case, anthrax disease can be treated successfully with antibiotics. Some
suggest the spending has more to do with politics than with actual threats.
Concerns over the military's use of the only currently licensed vaccine led
to a halt, at least temporarily, to mandatory inoculations there. And
although new vaccines are being commissioned, some people have warned that
the government needs to better supervise its entire anthrax program or risk
wasting money, making flawed decisions, and possibly putting the public in
danger. The issue is far from academic. In the event of a national
emergency, the government has the power to order vaccination of civilians,
regardless of whether the medications are licensed or experimental. ..."

29. "Are germs good for children's health?" dated 10 April 2006 by
Elizabeth Cohen from CNN.com at
<http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/conditions/04/05/cohen.allergies/>
http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/conditions/04/05/cohen.allergies/.

"Little Madison Sukenik crawls around her Fort Lauderdale home, grabbing
everything in sight, putting much of it in her mouth. A piece of French
toast that has fallen on the floor, a ball that her dog, Nugget, just chewed
on, a shoe -- all get chomped on. So are her parents freaked out? Running
for the antibacterial mouthwash? No -- Michelle and Mark Sukenik are more
than happy to let 14-month-old Madison crawl around the house, restaurants,
even her doctor's office, and put her fingers and other objects into her
mouth. In fact, Mark is a pediatric ear, nose and throat specialist and he
says exposure to germs will build up her immunity. Now some immunology
experts are beginning to agree that germs that many parents bleach and
disinfect out of existence might help children. "Hygiene hypothesis" holds
that when babies are exposed to germs, it helps them fight allergies and
asthma later. The prevalence of allergies has increased substantially in
the past 15 years, according to the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases, and some experts believe that too much cleanliness
might be a contributing factor. Dr. Dennis Ownby, chief of allergy and
immunology at the Medical College of Georgia, found in a study that babies
in households with multiple pets have fewer allergies at age 6 or 7 not just
to animals, but also to ragweed, grass and dust mites. Ownby also said
studies of babies in day care have found that while they have more
infections early, they have fewer allergies and less wheezing later. ..."

30. "Help for Siblings of Children with Special Needs" dated 10 April 2006
by Lifespan from eMax Health at http://www.emaxhealth.com/50/5461.html
<http://www.emaxhealth.com/50/5461.html> .

"Siblings of <http://www.emaxhealth.com/50/5461.html#> children with
chronic illnesses and developmental disabilities are two to three times more
likely than their peers to experience psychological adjustment problems.
Young children in particular are at high risk for experiencing these kinds
of problems. To address this concern, a report published in the December
2005 issue of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology finds that family-based
group intervention can help improve the self-confidence and knowledge of
young siblings (ages 4 to 7) of children with special needs. "We found that
participating in a group with other young siblings and parents of children
with disabilities was both educational, therapeutic, and fun," says lead
author Debra Lobato, PhD, with the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center
(BHCRC) and Brown <http://www.emaxhealth.com/50/5461.html#> Medical School.
The authors explain that within their families, well siblings may experience
extra caregiver burden, differential treatment, and an imbalance of family
resources. Outside their families, siblings may experience limited access to
information about the child's condition, negative peer reactions, and
disruptions in social activities. "It's important to address the
psychological and emotional needs of this group at an early stage," says
Lobato. "Children spend more of their lifetimes with their siblings than
they do with their parents. Siblings play a key role in one another's social
and emotional development. They often sleep together in the same room, eat
at the same table, and go to the same school. Our siblings are often the
ones who most easily make us laugh and cry. So, when a child has a chronic
illness or disability, brothers and sisters are likely to affect each other
in both positive and negative ways." ..."

31. "Women Ask, Are We Poisoning Children While Trying to Save Them?" dated
10 April 2006 in a press release from the Global Ministries of The United
Methodist Church at
<http://gbgm-umc.org/global_news/pr.cfm?articleid=3974&CFID=9484298&CFTOKEN=
36480734>
http://gbgm-umc.org/global_news/pr.cfm?articleid=3974&CFID=9484298&CFTOKEN=3
6480734.

"For the first two years of his life, Wesley appeared to be a normal,
healthy child - smiling in baby pictures with his brother and family. By
his third birthday, however, Wesley's childhood pictures changed. The life
in his eyes appeared lost. His smile was no longer there. His mother could
scream his name, and Wesley would not respond. Lisa K. Sykes, a pastor in
Richmond, Virginia, sought medical help for her son, Wesley. Doctors
diagnosed him with autism; then, tested him for heavy metal poisoning.
Tests showed that the child had mercury levels in his blood stream exceeding
danger levels. For Rev. Sykes, the devastating news came when she
discovered that the vaccines and common shots, administered to her during
pregnancy and to her child as an infant, had contained mercury - a
documented poison at certain levels. "Neither my physicians nor I knew
mercury was present in these pharmaceuticals, because it comprised part of
an antiquated preservative that was, and still is, labeled as Thimerosal,"
Sykes told directors at the Women's Division board of directors meeting this
past weekend in Stamford, Conn. Several childhood vaccines and the Rho Gam
shot given to some women during pregnancy contained Thimerosal until 1999
when companies removed it gradually. However, the flu shot administered to
young children, pregnant women, and the elderly still contain the
preservative, according to the Center for Disease Control web site. Also,
other non-standard immunizations being used more and more by parents contain
Thimerosal, said Rev. Sykes. "When you take something lethal, and put it
in something lifesaving, does that make the lethal thing, safe, or the
lifesaving thing, lethal?" Sykes asked. ..."

32. "Poisoning our children" dated 10 April 2006 by Lewis Seiler, Dan
Hamburg from the San Francisco Chronicle at
<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/04/1
0/EDGNSGUA0G1.DTL>
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/04/10
/EDGNSGUA0G1.DTL.

"Top Republicans -- Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and House
Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., -- recently sold the future of our children
to Big Pharma for a paltry $4 bucks a pop. That's the additional cost to
produce a safe vaccine, a vaccine minus the mercury-based preservative
thimerosal. Mercury is a deadly neurotoxin that has long been known to cause
serious learning disabilities and death, and is strongly suspected in
contributing to autism. According to the California Public Schools Autism
Prevalence Report for the School Years 1992-2003, the increase in autism
prevalence is systemic across the entire United States "and should be an
urgent public-health concern ... The disease frequency of autism now
surpasses that of all types of cancer combined." The report notes a 1,086
percent cumulative growth rate of autism over the period, with a 23 percent
average annual growth rate. A recent study published in the spring 2006
volume of the peer-reviewed Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons
shows that the rate of neurodevelopmental disorders in children has
decreased following the removal of thimerosal from most American childhood
vaccines. However, only about one-third of the 11 million children
vaccinated for influenza this year will receive mercury-free vaccines. At
the end of last year, President Bush signed the Public Readiness and
Emergency Preparedness Act (PREPA), granting blanket immunity to
pharmaceutical companies for vaccine-induced injuries. The measure is a
carte blanche for industry, allowing it even to reintroduce mercury in
vaccines that are clean, and under the behest of the World Health
Organization, to continue shipping tainted vaccine to the "developing
world." The federal government has known enough to stop the use of mercury
in vaccines for more than a decade. Industry has known of the dangers of
thimerosal since at least 1991. But using the preservative made the sale
of vaccines more profitable. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention has at times seemed just as concerned about these profits as the
companies themselves. Cynics have noted the "revolving door" between
industry and government that seems to alter the perspective of both. In
1999, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended "the
elimination of thimerosal as soon as possible." In 2002, the CDC stated in a
press release "all vaccines will be thimerosal-free as soon as adequate
supplies are available." Yet, last year the CDC refused to live up to its
own policy by claiming "no preference for thimerosal-free vaccines." ..."

33. "New Study Demonstrates Computer-Assisted Therapy Increases Language &
Socialization in Children With Autism- New Treatment Program TeachTown:
Basics Provides Tools That Increase Language, Education, Social Interactions
and Life Skills in" dated 11 April 2006 in press release on the PRNewswire
at <http://www.sys-con.com/read/205813.htm>
http://www.sys-con.com/read/205813.htm.

"According to a recent study conducted by TeachTown Inc., a Seattle based
autism research company, and supported by a grant from the Department of
Education, children with autism and children with Down syndrome using a new
computer-assisted treatment program, TeachTown: Basics, showed a 53% overall
increase in receptive language, social understanding, and cognitive skills.
Additionally, findings suggest computer-assisted programs like TeachTown:
Basics can increase children's interest and motivation, language and social
interaction, and provide treatment at a significantly reduced cost. In
addition, it may be an excellent option for rural, low and middle-income
families who do not have access to trained professionals or who cannot
afford the services. For those children currently enrolled in services,
computer-assisted programs can be utilized to supplement and reinforce
skills. This paper is currently at press in the Journal of Speech and
Language Pathology and Applied Behavior Analysis; 2006. The complete study
is available online at <http://www.teachtown.com/research>
http://www.teachtown.com/research. "TeachTown has spent five years
developing a computer-assisted treatment program that shows solid evidence
of increasing language and socialization skills among children with autism,"
said Dr. Chris Whalen, Founder and Chief Science Officer of TeachTown. "The
results from this study are promising and affirm TeachTown's methods,
however, more research needs to be done in this new area to continue to
develop bigger and better resources for children and their families." ..."

34. "Parents are still waiting for mercury-free vaccines" dated 12 April
2006 in a Letter to the Editor of The Hill by Wendy Fournier, president,
National Autism Association at
http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/Comment/LetterstotheEditor/041
206.html
<http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/Comment/LetterstotheEditor/04
1206.html> .



"Seven years ago, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics
(AAP) realized they had been injecting children with vaccines containing
levels of mercury far exceeding Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.
They chose not to stop the practice immediately and recall vaccines
containing the neurotoxic, mercury-based preservative thimerosal, calling
instead for a phase-out ("Autism parents allege CDC cover-up," April 6).
Seven years seems an eternity to parents who watched their perfectly healthy
children plunge into the depths of autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity
disorder and other neurodevelopmental disorders after receiving
mercury-containing vaccines. It is painful to stand helplessly by as more
children suffer the same easily preventable fate. The amount of thimerosal
has been reduced in most pediatric vaccines. It looked like progress was
being made. But now the CDC appears intent on reestablishing previous
mercury levels in children by adding several flu shots to the routine
childhood schedule. In addition to children age 6 months to 5 years, the CDC
also recommends flu shots for pregnant women. Astoundingly, the agency
refuses to state a preference for mercury-free shots, even though vaccine
manufacturers have stated that they can provide an adequate supply. Autism
rates are declining since the reduction of thimerosal, further implicating a
causal association with the autism epidemic affecting 1 in 166 children. The
CDC, the FDA and the pharmaceutical industry must explain how they allowed
this tragedy to happen and why they have let it continue for so long.
Apparently, fears of liability and public backlash prevent our federal
agencies from removing the neurotoxin. Meanwhile, more and more children are
being injured. ..."



35. "Spring Fever and Behaviors" dated 12 April 2006 from the Special Ed
Law Blog at
<http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2006/04/spring_fever_an.html#more>
http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2006/04/spring_fever_an.html#more.

"While I have not seen any scientific or statistical studies, in my personal
experience the period from mid-April to the end of the year can be among the
most problematic periods for serious behaviors in school. I do not think
that it is an accident or happenstance that some of the worst violence in
schools has occurred during this period of time. Bad things can happen in
school at any time but during this period the odds seem higher. Among the
factors that in my view contribute to the higher prevalence of serious
behaviors are the following: ..."

36. "The Age of Autism: Christian's mom speaks" by Dan Olmsted from United
Press International at <http://tinyurl.com/g27cn> http://tinyurl.com/g27cn.

"A small earthquake rumbled through the autism world shortly after 7:30 a.m.
on April 11, and the aftershocks are going to be felt for a long time.
That's when Katie Wright, daughter of NBC Universal Chairman Bob Wright,
said she is concerned her young son Christian's autism might be related to
vaccines he received, that he is getting better through treatments that
include biomedical interventions, and that it's time for parents to follow
their own "common sense" when they get their kids vaccinated. Big deal?
Yes, big deal. It's hard to overstate the buzz circulating through the
autism community over the past few months as it became known that Katie
Wright was among those with concerns about vaccines playing a role in her
child's autism -- and that she was trying to help him recover accordingly.
"I think it's a huge story," one autism activist e-mailed me in February.
"This child triggered a weeklong series on NBC and the most well-funded
autism organization on the planet (Autism Speaks)," not to mention the
high-profile heft of the Wrights in lobbying for more money, more research
and more awareness of a disorder that afflicts 1 in every 166 American kids.
Thousands of parents with concerns just like Katie Wright's have been all
but ostracized, as have the small but growing minority of doctors trying to
help them. I know two MDs who lost faculty appointments shortly after I
wrote about them, and I hear story after story about pediatricians rolling
their eyes when they hear vaccine-related health concerns of any kind from
parents. Many ban families who balk from their practices. ..."

37. "Mumps outbreak raging in Iowa, 8 other Midwest states" dated 13 April
2006 by Rob Stein from The Washington Post in San Franscisco Chronicle at
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/04/13/MNGMII87LU1.DTL
<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/04/13/MNGMII87LU1.DTL
&type=health> &type=health.


"Local, state and federal health experts are urgently trying to contain a
mumps outbreak raging across Iowa that has now spread to at least eight
other Midwestern states. At least 515 mumps cases have been reported in
Iowa this year, far outpacing the five cases the state usually sees in a
year and the 200 to 300 that typically occur nationally. The epidemic, the
largest since a 1988 outbreak in Kansas, shows no sign of slowing, with at
least 100 more cases in Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana,
Michigan, Missouri and Illinois. As health officials work to break the
chain of transmission of the viral infection, disease detectives are trying
to puzzle out what is causing it. Cases appear to be concentrated among
young adults who are otherwise healthy. "Why Iowa, and why now? We really
don't know," said William Bellini of the federal Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention in Atlanta. "There are a lot of unknowns." Among them: Does
the mumps vaccine fail to "take" in more people than had been thought? Does
its protection wane? Is the virus causing this outbreak less susceptible to
the vaccine for some reason, or is it more infectious? "This shows us once
again that the world is a very small place," said William Schaffner, an
infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University. "We have to remain on
guard, even about diseases we usually rarely see anymore in this country."
..."

38. "Another Barrier Broken- For intellectually disabled kids, college has
finally become an option" dated 13 April 2006 by Peg Tyre from Newsweek at
<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12306378/site/newsweek/>
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12306378/site/newsweek/.

"In many ways, Katie Apostolides, an education major at Becker College in
Worcester, Mass., is a typical undergraduate. As a freshman, she found it
hard to leave her family behind in Pennsylvania and get used to dorm life.
Like other new students, she worried that she'd never find close friends.
One class-medical terminology-was unexpectedly difficult, and she had to
withdraw in order to preserve her grade-point average. Her second year, she
says, "has been going better." She's used to dorm life now. She's made
friends. The workload is still challenging, but these days, she says, "I
take the initiative to go up to teacher and ask for help." Apostolides's
troubles may seem ordinary, but she is far from an average college
sophomore. She has Down syndrome-a chromosomal abnormality characterized by
mild to moderate mental retardation. Profiting from a 30-year movement to
keep disabled kids in mainstream school settings, Apostolides, 22, earned a
degree from a public high school in Pennsylvania and now, supported by her
parents and her own unflagging enthusiasm, is working on a college degree.
She's not the only mentally disabled person attending college these days. In
2001, there were 15 postsecondary programs for intellectually disabled
students. In 2006, the number has swelled to 115. Next fall, two colleges in
New Jersey-a community college and a four-year university-are launching
pilot programs to offer a version of the college experience to such
students. ..."

39. "Hyperbaric oxygen chambers treating autism in Lower Hudson Valley"
dated 13 April 2006 by MARCELA ROJAS from THE JOURNAL NEWS at
http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060413/NEWS02/604
130301/1019/NEWS03
<http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060413/NEWS02/60
4130301/1019/NEWS03> .

"Eight-year-old Joseph Elliot slid out of a hyperbaric tank during one of
his recent daily sessions and did something he had never done before. He
buttoned his shirt. That spontaneous act may be of little consequence to
some, but for Joseph, who has autism, the feat was another example of how
oxygen treatment may be helping him. "He's more talkative and engaged,"
said his mother, Pat Elliot of Irvington. "Usually he would be happy to
amuse himself, but he notices people more now. It just makes him more
typical." Joseph started the first of his 40 one-hour sessions a few weeks
ago at Valley Health and Hyperbarics in Mahopac, so the full extent of his
improvement may have not yet been realized. Though treatment outcomes vary
from patient to patient, the majority see benefits, said Dr. Giuseppina
Feingold, a pediatrician and Valley Health's medical director. Improvements
in language, awareness, social skills and eye contact have been reported,
she said. The procedure also has aided those suffering from intestinal
inflammation and bacterial parasites, problems associated with autistic
patients, she added. "On the one hand, you have people saying autism is not
treatable but, on the other, there are those who say it is treatable,"
Feingold said. "Within that movement, people are saying, 'Let's look at
hyperbarics.'" Although hyperbaric oxygen treatment, or HBOT, does not
currently have government support, more people are turning to it as an
intervention for autism. ..."

40. "Bus driver busted for tying up girl, 7" dated 13 April 2006 by KERRY
BURKE and CARRIE MELAGO from the New York DAILY NEWS at
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/408539p-345758c.html
<http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/408539p-345758c.html> .

"A school bus driver was busted after heartlessly restraining a 7-year-old
Queens girl with seat belts and electrical tape on her ride home last week,
authorities said yesterday. "I tried to call for help, but he kept on
driving," said little Alexis Warnic, of the South Jamaica Houses. "I was
crying, and he kept on driving and smiling." Edwidge Jean, 52, of Flatbush,
Brooklyn, allegedly bound the special-needs student April 4 after she tried
to leave her seat to get a book about Harriet Tubman out of her backpack at
the front of the vehicle. Students on the bus from other schools told their
teachers, who then phoned educators at Alexis' school, Public School 23 in
Glen Oaks. The second-grader's mother was outraged when she learned someone
allegedly acted so cruelly. "He said Alexis was out of control, but it was
him who was out of control," said Kimberly Randall, 35. "She's only 7."
Alexis - who suffers from attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity -
said Jean lashed out when she tried to retrieve the volume to prepare for a
book report. Jean allegedly pulled his 12passenger vehicle over on Union
Turnpike and double-knotted two seat belts to restrain the bubbly and
articulate girl, then crossed her wrists and tied them with electrical tape.
"Nobody like that should work with kids," Randall said. "These workers need
to get some training to treat them correctly." Added Alexis, "God forbid he
should do this to anyone else." Jean was charged Tuesday with unlawful
imprisonment, endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, and faces
up to a year behind bars. He could not be reached for comment. ..."

41. "Police Elopement Guidelines" dated 13 April 2006 from the Special Ed
Law Blog at
<http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2006/04/police_elopemen.html#more>
http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2006/04/police_elopemen.html#more.

"The F.B.I. and other law enforcement agencies have developed
<http://policeandautism.cjb.net/avoiding.html> guidelines for people with
autism, families and police to address elopement behaviors. The topics are
as follows:

* What Families Can Do To Lessen Police Interactions

* Information for Persons with Autism

* Information for Law Enforcement Officers

* Police Training Sessions

The guidelines are intended for people with autism, but have application to
any person who exhibits elopement behaviors. Among the common sense
recommendations are to rehearse interactions with the police, carry an
information card which automatically invokes right to counsel and to remain
silent, and red flagging the 911 operator and local police and fire that a
loved one has autism. Alerting neighbors as to the risk of elopement, and
the fact that for some individuals there may be no sense of danger.
Putting multiple locks on windows and doors are among the interventions
suggested to families. I have had numerous clients who have, as a spring
ritual, handed out leaflets in the community with the child's picture and
explaining how autism manifests itself for him. Other clients have turned
their homes into a locksmith's paradise with multiple locks at differing
heights reflecting the child's growth and dexterity over time. ..."



42. "Disabled Still Struggle To Land Jobs" by Ellen Simon from the
Associated Press at <http://tinyurl.com/o2yp8> http://tinyurl.com/o2yp8.



"Bruce Morgan knew he was in for a long job search. Morgan has a strong
resume and a Masters of Business Administration,
but he also has cerebral palsy, which affects his speech. After his company,
Nabisco, was bought by Kraft Foods Inc., his 25-person department was laid
off on the same day in 2004. Some of his colleagues planned to take time
off. Morgan, a triathlete, a piano player and a father of three, started
looking even before the layoff. Over the next 19 months, he had 125
in-person meetings and sent a monthly e-mail update to 1,600 people.
Sometimes he was merely discouraged, once he was felt he was discriminated
against so blatantly, he filed a complaint with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission. Near the end of his search, Morgan, who lives
Pompton Plains, N.J. was so disheartened, he started his own computer repair
business. The Americans with Disabilities Act, passed in 1990, prohibits
discrimination against people with disabilities, yet the employment rate for
those with disabilities has been nearly flat for almost 20 years. Only 34
percent of working-age people with disabilities had full time or part time
jobs in 1986. In 2004, the figure was 35 percent, according to surveys done
by the National Organization on Disability in conjunction with the Harris
Survey. People without disabilities have an employment rate of 78 percent.
People with disabilities are nearly three times more likely to live in
poverty than people without disabilities; 26 percent of people with
disabilities had an 2004 annual household income below $15,000, versus 9
percent of those without disabilities, the survey found. ..."



43. ""A Chiropractic Perspective" by Jane Jennings and Martina Barker in
March 2006 edition of Clinical Chiropractic at http://tinyurl.com/qa2tp
<http://tinyurl.com/qa2tp> .


"Summary: Chiropractors, as with other primary healthcare clinicians, are
often faced with a child whom they suspect may have symptoms of autism,
often previously undiagnosed. As such, it is important that there is
familiarity with the symptoms, primary of which are difficulties in
communicating or relating to other people. Although there is no known cause
for autism, various potential aetiologies are under investigation. A number
of abnormalities are found in multiple systems and functions in the autistic
individual who presents a number of management challenges. Some researchers
have discovered a laterality of the atlas in children with autism and there
are various suggestions as to why removing upper cervical dysfunction may
have a positive effect on the symptoms of autism. This paper offers a
systematic review of the condition with emphasis on the elements pertinent
to the manual therapist. ..."




44. "Clinical Efficacy of Upper Cervical Versus Full Spine Chiropractic
Care on Children with Autism: A Randomized linical Trial" by Khaled A.
Khorshid Bio, DC, MS, MBBCh; Roy W. Sweat Bio, DC; David A. Zemba, Jr. Bio,
DC; Brett N. Zemba Bio, DC in 9 March 2006 edition of Journal of Vertebral
Subluxation at <http://www.jvsr.com/abstracts/index.asp?id=264>
http://www.jvsr.com/abstracts/index.asp?id=264.



"Background: Children with autism are presented with multiple categories of
clinical pictures that affect their social, sensory, speech, and physical
development. Parents of autistic children seek all possible therapies
available including chiropractic. In this study, the clinical outcome of an
upper cervical based chiropractic technique is compared to full spine
adjustment in autistic children. Methods: The clinical effects of full
spine adjustment for 14 autistic children were evaluated using the Autism
Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC). ATEC is a questionnaire about
children's development and progress answered by parents. It was developed
and is scored, online, by the Autism Research Institute of San Diego, CA.
Seven of these children were randomly assigned to be shifted to Atlas
Orthogonal upper cervical adjustment. The remaining seven children continued
full spine adjustment. Repeated monthly clinical assessments were done for
3-5 months. Pre and post x-ray and leg length analysis was also monitored.
Results: The clinical improvement of the autistic children showed in the
parent's observations through decrease of ATEC scores. This improvement of
ATEC scores was seen in the cases of six of the seven children under upper
cervical adjustment and in five of the seven children under full spine
adjustment. The total ATEC average improvement in the upper cervical group
was 32%, while only 8.3% in the full spine group. Two autistic children
under the upper cervical adjustment protocol no longer met the criteria to
be considered autistic following the interventions. Conclusion: In this
study, the clinical outcome of chiropractic care showed higher efficacy with
upper cervical adjustment when compared to full spine adjustment in autistic
children. Further studies are recommended. ..."



45. "New Thinking on Neurodevelopment" by Michael Szpir in February 2006
edition of Environmental Health Perspectives at
http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/114-2/focus.html
<http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/114-2/focus.html> .



"The notion that some substances in the environment can damage the nervous
system has an ancient history. The neurotoxicity of lead was recognized more
than 2,000 years ago by the Greek physician Dioscerides, who wrote, "Lead
makes the mind give way." In the intervening millennia many other substances
have been added to the list of known or suspected neurotoxicants. Despite
this accumulation of knowledge, there is still much that isn't understood
about how neurotoxicants affect the developing brain, especially the effects
of low-dose exposures. Today researchers are taking a hard look at low-dose
exposures in utero and during childhood to unravel some of the mysteries of
impaired neurodevelopment. About 17% of school-age children in the United
States suffer from a disability that affects their behavior, memory, or
ability to learn, according to a study published in the March 1994 issue of
Pediatrics by a team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC). The list of maladies includes attention deficit/hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD), autistic spectrum disorders, epilepsy, Tourette syndrome,
and less specific conditions such as mental retardation and cerebral palsy.
All are believed to be the outcome of some abnormal process that unfolded as
the brain was developing in utero or in the young child. These disorders
have an enormous impact on families and society. According to the 1996 book
Learning Disabilities: Lifelong Issues, children with these disorders have
higher rates of mental illness and suicide, and are more likely to engage in
substance abuse and to commit crimes as adults. The overall economic cost of
neurodevelopmental disorders in the United States is estimated to be
$81.5-167 billion per year, according to a report published in the
<http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/2001/suppl-6/885-903muir/muir-full.html>
December 2001 issue of EHP Supplements. ..."



46. "Autism: a Brain Disorder, or a Disorder That Affects The Brain?" by
Martha R. Herbert in 2005 edition of Clinical Neuropsychiatry at
<http://tinyurl.com/ln23b> http://tinyurl.com/ln23b.




"Summary: Autism is defined behaviorally, as a syndrome of abnormalities
involving language, social reciprocity and hyperfocus or reduced behavioral
flexibility. It is clearly heterogeneous, and it can be accompanied by
unusual talents as well as by impairments, but its underlying biological and
genetic basis is unknown. Autism has been modeled as a brain-based,
strongly genetic disorder, but a series of emerging findings and hypothesis
support a broader model of the condition as genetically influenced and
systemic. These include imaging, neuropathology and psychological evidence
of pervasive (and not just specific) brain and phenotypic features;
postnatal evolution and chronic persistence of brain, behavior, and tissue
changes (e.g. inflammation) and physical illness symptomatology (e.g.
gastrointestinal, immune, recurrent infection); overlap with other
disorders; and reports of rate increases and improvement or recovery that
support a role for modulation of the condition by environmental factors
(e.g. exacerbation or triggering by toxins, infectious agents, or other
stressors, or improvement by treatment). Modeling autism more broadly
encompasses previous work, but also encourages the expansion of research and
treatment to include intermediary domains of molecular and cellular
mechanisms, as well as chronic tissue, metabolic and somatic changes
previously addressed only to a limited degree. The heterogeneous
biologies underlying autism may conceivably converge onto the autism profile
via multiple mechanisms that all somehow perturb brain connectivity.
Studying the interplay between the biology of intermediary mechanisms on the
one hand and processing and connectivity abnormalities on the other may
illuminate relevant final common pathways and contribute to focusing the
search for treatment targets in this biologically and etiologically
heterogeneous behavioral syndrome. ..."



47. "Test May Help Predict Depression Treatment Success" by Will Boggs, MD
in April 2006 edition of American Journal of Psychiatry at
<BLOCKED::http://tinyurl.com/je9xz> http://tinyurl.com/je9xz.


"A brain imaging technique called functional MRI may help spot those
individuals with "unipolar" depression who are likely to respond to
cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), research suggests. "Bipolar" depression
(also called manic depression) is marked by extreme mood swings from
euphoria and excessive energy to severe depression and hopelessness.
"Unipolar" depression is marked by only one half of the equation that makes
up the bipolar disorder. "By examining brain function before treatment,"
Dr. Greg J. Siegle from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine told
Reuters Health, "it may be possible to give cognitive therapy to just those
patients for whom it is most likely to be effective, thereby improving
treatment rates and decreasing patient burden." Siegle and colleagues
performed MRI on 14 unmedicated depressed patients and 21 comparison
subjects who had never been depressed. This was done during performance of a
task sensitive to sustained emotional information processing. The
investigators repeated testing of the depressed patients after 16 sessions
of CBT. The team found that low sustained reactivity to negative words in a
certain area of the brain was strongly associated with a reduction in
depression after CBT. High sustained reactivity to negative words in a
different area of the brain was also associated with improved treatment
response. Siegle and his colleagues are conducting a larger study to
investigate whether the same mechanisms that predict response to CBT change
upon recovery. "In addition, we are looking forward to performing similar
studies with patients who are receiving medications," Siegle said. ..."



48. "New Research Finds a Decline in Perceptual Ability as Infants Get
Older" dated 14 April 2006 in a press release from
<http://www.newswise.com/institutions/view/?id=1234> Florida Atlantic
University at <http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/519673/>
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/519673/.



"A study conducted by researchers at Florida Atlantic University and
Princeton University, and reported on in the April 17, 2006 issue of the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that infants start out
life with perceptual abilities that subsequently decline as they get older.
These new findings contrast with previous studies that have shown that
perceptual abilities improve during childhood. According to Dr. David J.
Lewkowicz, professor of psychology in the Charles E. Schmidt College of
Science at FAU, head of the Perceptual Development Laboratory, and principal
investigator, "As we get older we become specialists, and when we specialize
some of our initial perceptual abilities actually decline." In this study,
Lewkowicz, in collaboration with Dr. Asif Ghazanfar of Princeton University,
tested whether infants could use their ability to associate human faces and
voices as a way to associate the faces and voices of monkeys. The
researchers reasoned that because infants normally do not have experience
with monkey faces and voices they may not be able to associate them when
they are young, but may when they get older. To test this possibility, the
researchers presented two side-by-side videos of the same monkey face
producing two different visible vocalizations and played one of the audible
vocalizations through a speaker at the same time. Interestingly, and
contrary to conventional wisdom, the findings showed that young infants (4-
to 6-month-old) matched the vocalization to the corresponding face by
looking longer at the face whose vocalization they were hearing, but the
older infants (8- to 10-month-old) did not. ..."



49. "Bird flu threat not so grave, CDC chief says" dated 15 April 2006 by
M. ALEXANDER OTTO from The News Tribune at
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/5663788p-5080102c.html
<http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/5663788p-5080102c.html> .



"Federal health officials at a meeting Friday in Tacoma downplayed the risk
bird flu poses to humans, contrasting earlier warnings from the federal
government. "There is no evidence it will be the next pandemic," Dr. Julie
Gerberding, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in
Atlanta, said of avian flu. There is "no evidence it is evolving in a
direction that is becoming more transmissible to people." Gerberding spoke
at the Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center at a pandemic flu conference
that drew 1,200 people from across the state, mostly health department
officials and others involved in emergency planning. Other officials from
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and elsewhere joined her. Gov. Chris Gregoire and several
upper-level state officials also spoke. Gerberding's comments on bird flu
contrast earlier statements from the federal government that tended to
emphasize worse-case scenarios. In a November letter to the public, for
instance, President Bush encouraged preparing "ourselves, our nation, and
our world to fight this potentially devastating outbreak of infectious
disease." The concern is that the H5N1 strain of bird flu virus will mutate
into a form passed easily between people. Audience questions Friday about
buying surgical masks and stockpiling food showed the concern Bush's
comments and others have raised. But Gerberding noted that, though the
disease has killed "gazillions of birds," it has killed about 100 people out
of about 200 sickened worldwide. The victims were in intense, daily contact
with sick flocks, often sharing the same living space. Two people have
become infected from person-to-person contact. She did not say what had
changed the thinking of health care officials about bird flu, but said that,
at this point, there is "no reason to think it ever will" pass easily
between people. Given those facts, bird flu, like SARS, swine flu and other
once widely publicized health threats, might never become a significant
human illness. ..."



50. "Mother pushes for vaccine ban- A bill considered by a legislative
committee has Kansas joining a global debate about the link between mercury
and autism" dated 16 April 2006 by Scott Rothschile from the Lawrence
Journal-World at
http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2006/apr/16/mother_pushes_vaccine_ban/?city_loc
al
<http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2006/apr/16/mother_pushes_vaccine_ban/?city_lo
cal> .



"Legislation that a Lawrence mother says will protect children and parents
from the kind of mercury poisoning that happened to her son is sitting idle
in a Senate committee. Senate Bill 537 would lead to a state ban of
vaccines that contain thimerosal, a compound that is made up of 50 percent
mercury, which is a known toxin that affects the nervous system. Thimerosal
is a preservative used to ward off bacterial and fungal contamination in
some vaccines and other health care products, and it is the focus of a
raging debate. Federal and state officials say it is safe, but thousands of
parents have blamed thimerosal for their children's disorders and the recent
increase in the number of autistic children. Linda Weinmaster said her son
Adam, now 14, was poisoned by thimerosal from shots she received during her
pregnancy and vaccines Adam received later as an infant. He has a number of
impairments because of the adverse effects of thimerosal, she said. "These
damaged children are not only costing the taxpayers millions in special
education services, but many will not be able to hold jobs and will have to
be taken care of for the rest of their lives, putting even more of a burden
on parents and society," she said. Like many parents nationwide, Weinmaster
said government studies that fail to show links between thimerosal and
autism are flawed and biased by ties to the pharmaceutical industry. The
controversy over thimerosal has been fought in capitals around the world.
Several countries, including Denmark, have banned the use of thimerosal.
..."



51. "New St. Lucie court will focus on mentally ill inmates" dated 16 April
2006 by DEREK SIMMONSEN from the TC (FL) Local News at
<http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/local_news/article/0,2545,TCP_16736_4624527,00.ht
ml>
http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/local_news/article/0,2545,TCP_16736_4624527,00.htm
l.



"It's no secret that some of the people who return again and again to the
St. Lucie County Jail are not well. Behind the crimes they are charged
with, there can lie a mental illness going untreated. Just as drug court is
designed to help people overcome substance abuse problems, a new mental
health court is being created to treat people who are mentally ill, mentally
retarded or autistic in the hopes of keeping them from returning to jail.
"A lot of these incidents where people wind up in jail could be prevented,"
said Lisa Fonteyn, client services director at the public defender's office.
"If you don't deal with the underlying issue, giving someone 36 days in jail
doesn't help." The mental health court, developed by a coalition of local
court officials, is expected to begin operations in May and will be overseen
by Circuit Judge Cynthia Cox on a biweekly basis. Defendants will be
screened within two days of arriving at the jail to see if they might
benefit from the program, in addition to medical and psychiatric screening
that jail personnel already do. If attorneys on both sides think the person
would be a good fit for the program, and the person agrees, they are put on
the mental health court docket. Once a treatment plan is drawn up, Cox must
give her approval to it and decide any other requirements a defendant must
follow. Charges, which typically are minor crimes like disorderly conduct,
trespassing and resisting arrest without violence, are dropped if the person
follows the program successfully. If they don't, they go back into the
regular court system. "We see the same people again and again on the
lesser, misdemeanor offenses," said Assistant State Attorney Jason Berger,
the county courts supervisor, who helped put together the court. "Hopefully
this will have a good shot at reducing recidivism." Jail staff estimate
about 20 percent of the inmates at any given time have mental health
problems, ranging from mild to severe. The main target for the new
specialized court are the "frequent flyers," the small group of people who
return every few months to the jail on minor charges that could be prevented
if they were taking medication or in a treatment program. ..."



52. "Experts now have hundreds of reasons to question mumps vaccine" dated
16 April 2006 by Kristina Herrndobler from the Hearst Newspapers at
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA041606.5A.mumps.vaccine.2
670429.html
<http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA041606.5A.mumps.vaccine.
2670429.html> .



"A major mumps outbreak in eight Midwestern states has raised questions
about the effectiveness of the mumps vaccine routinely given to children.
More than 600 cases of mumps have been reported in Iowa, compared with three
cases last year. Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Nebraska, Kansas
and Missouri have reported a total of more than 100 cases to the federal
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The outbreak adds up to the
largest mumps outbreak in 20 years. The CDC has sent teams of health
experts to Iowa to study the outbreaks and the vaccine's effectiveness. "We
don't know as of yet why some of those who have received two doses (of
vaccine) are contracting mumps," said Lola Russell, CDC spokeswoman,
reflecting the puzzlement of other health experts trying to explain why many
mumps victims had received the recommended two doses of vaccine. In Iowa,
for example, 64 percent of those who came down with the mumps had two doses
of the vaccine. Another 10 percent had one dose. In almost all the other
cases, the patient's vaccination records were unknown. Only 3 percent of the
patients are confirmed to not have had the vaccine. Stanley Perlman, a
professor of pediatrics and infectious diseases at the University of Iowa,
said the outbreak might prove that "the vaccine is just OK - and not
wonderful." Ken Haller, an assistant professor of pediatrics at St. Louis
University School of Medicine, said the outbreak might indicate immunity to
mumps weakens years after the vaccination. Russell, at the CDC, said the
vaccine is working. "If the vaccine was not working, we would see a higher
incident of mumps in Iowa and the surrounding states," she said. "The advice
we are giving is that the MMR vaccine is the most effective means of
protection." The CDC reports the vaccine is 90 percent to 95 percent
effective and that immunity should last more than 25 years, probably a
lifetime."



53. "Big rise in patients with deadly allergies- Children are worst hit by
rise in killer reactions" dated 16 April 2006 by Jamie Doward from The
Observer (UK) at
<http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1754840,00.html>
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1754840,00.html.



"The number of people prone to severe, sometimes fatal, allergic reactions
has accelerated dramatically over the last two years, according to the
latest official figures, which show there has been an unprecedented increase
in prescriptions issued to combat the condition. An analysis of the
Department of Health's prescription tables, published last week, reveals the
number of emergency adrenaline injectors issued by doctors to combat severe
allergy rose by 54 per cent between 2003 and 2005. The tables show that
last year a record 153,820 injectors were issued, compared with 99,325 in
2003 and just 25,200 in 1995 - a rise of 610 per cent over the decade. The
most common triggers for a severe reaction - known in the medical world as
anaphylaxis - are allergies to nuts, especially peanuts, fish, dairy
products, latex, insect stings and, more recently, kiwi fruit. Around 20
children die each year from the condition. Studies suggest that there has
been a sevenfold increase in hospital admissions over the last decade.
'These figures show there has been a significant increase in severe allergic
conditions,' said David Reading, director of The Anaphylaxis Campaign. 'But
even though there is more awareness of the problem in GPs' surgeries, there
is no consistency. Some people get adrenaline, some people don't. 'No one
knows for sure what is causing it. Parents with children who suffer from the
problem feel they have a sword of Damocles hanging over them. All you can do
at the moment is treat the symptoms with adrenaline or avoid the triggers.
It is vital we have better labelling of food in shops and restaurants.'
..."



54. "Old" diseases still threaten" dated 17April 2006 from an editorial in
the Denver Post at http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_3717793
<http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_3717793> .



"The very idea of avian flu is raising serious fears as public health
specialists warn of the day when a human-transmitted strain rages into the
community. But a recent mumps outbreak in the Midwest remind us that "old"
diseases still threaten - though there are proven ways to prevent their
harm. More than 600 cases of mumps were reported in Iowa as of late last
week, with smaller outbreaks in five nearby states. The highly contagious
disease is usually uncomfortable but not life-threatening, but it can lead
to serious complications like meningitis, hearing loss and reduced fertility
in a few patients. Vaccination has long been highly effective in preventing
mumps - as high as 95 percent effective. Although health officials aren't
sure what caused the recent outbreak, its pattern may be an indirect
confirmation of the vaccine's effectiveness. Most of those who've come down
with mumps are college-age, with very few patients among school-age and
younger children. Iowa state epidemiologist Dr. Patricia Quinlisk speculated
that's because young adults typically had only one mumps shot as children,
whereas a two-shot sequence has since become the norm. Vaccination against
infectious diseases was one of the great public-health triumphs of the 20th
century. For example, a vaccine introduced in the 1970s has virtually wiped
out congenital rubella syndrome, a birth defect caused by the German measles
..."



55. "Autistic teen develops own cartoon characters" dated 17 April 2006 by
PENNY RIORDAN from The Annapolis Capital at
<http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2006/04_17-05/NBH>
http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2006/04_17-05/NBH.



"Gary Schmedes Jr., waves his arms in delight as he shows off the hundreds
of near carbon copies of Walt Disney and Warner Bros. cartoon characters
he's made. He quickly moves through his colorful sketches, quizzing the
visitor on whether Bugs Bunny looks like Bugs Bunny or Mickey Mouse looks
like Mickey Mouse. Doesn't that look like Bugs?" he asks, his voice rising.
Until recently, the 15-year-old Ferndale resident with autism was only able
to recopy the characters he had grown to love. But with a little help from
his home therapy instructor, Clarence Weefur, and his family, Gary has
finally been able to channel his meticulous drawing habits into his very own
cartoon characters. "Some cartoons are violent, but Gary is not violent,"
Mr. Weefur said, describing his love for the warm-hearted hilarious
characters Gary draws. "He likes it because it's fun," said Mr. Weefur, who
spends several afternoons a week with Gary through Trellis Services, a
company that provides support services to people with autism. For years,
Gary has been drawing as often as he can. In art classes at various schools,
he was able to draw with an accuracy and consistency that surpassed other
students, said his mother, Syleste. He would often pause and replay parts
of Disney movies; sketching as he watched. "It's like a carbon copy that
comes out every time," she said, recalling the characters Gary latched on to
over the years. There were hundreds of copies of Lucy and Ricky Ricardo, Ren
and Stimpy as well as Disney and Warner Bros. characters. But it wasn't
until roughly two years ago, when his family started thinking about Gary's
future vocation, that they put drawing into the picture as a possible
career. ..."



56. "SUPER DUPER" RELEASES " I HAVE AUTISM" KIT TO HELP PARENTS, TEACHERS
AND KIDS WITH AUTISM" dated 18 April 2006 from Eastern New Mexico University
on Education News.org at
<http://www.educationnews.org/writers/michael/I_HAVE_AUTISM.htm>
http://www.educationnews.org/writers/michael/I_HAVE_AUTISM.htm.

"Pat Crissey's "I Have Autism" Kit, which is available through Super Duper
Publications, helps parents and educators explain autism to young children.
This kit contains reproducible, personalized "I Have Autism" books, a
Resource Guide, and a CD-ROM. The CD-ROM contains the Resource Guide and the
"I Have Autism" book in PDF format, for easy reproduction. The Resource
Guide defines Autism, explains when it is appropriate for parents or
educators to approach children who have autism about their differences, and
gives tips about how to discuss autism with children who have autism, their
classroom peers, their siblings, and others who are involved in the
children's lives. Moreover, Pat Crissey includes a helpful list of
electronic and printed resources for parents and educators to further their
knowledge and understanding of autism. The Resource Guide also includes an
"I Have Autism" reproducible workbook, which can be personalized. The "I
Have Autism" workbook contains the story of Alex, a little boy with autism.
Alex explains what autism is, how it affects his life, and the strategies he
uses to cope with autism. This book is a good way to introduce children to
autism because it helps children with autism understand that they are not
alone, and why they are different from other children. People who are
interested in more information or purchasing "I Have Autism," can visit
Super Duper Publications' website, <http://www.superduperinc.com/>
http://www.superduperinc.com , email <mailto:custserv@...>
custserv@... , call toll-free to (800) 277-8737, or mail to
P.O. Box 24997, Greenville, SC 29616 USA ."

57. "Studies Minimize Dental Filling Threat To Children" dated 18 April
2006 from CBS4 Denver.com at
<http://cbs4denver.com/health/health_story_108142914.html>
http://cbs4denver.com/health/health_story_108142914.html.

"Two long-awaited, government-funded studies found no evidence that dental
fillings containing mercury can cause IQ-lowering brain damage or other
neurological problems in children. Children with such fillings were no more
likely than other youngsters to suffer such problems, the researchers found.
Some experts found the findings powerfully reassuring. But the studies are
unlikely to end the fierce debate over the long-term effects of what are
known as amalgam fillings, and some advocates bitterly accused the
researchers of conducting unethical experiments on children. Amalgam
fillings, also called silver fillings, are made of mercury and other metals
and have been used by dentists for more than a century. But their use has
dropped in recent years as more and more doctors switch to resin composite
fillings, which are considered more appealing because they are white. Some
advocacy groups and dentists have long contended that the mercury in
fillings can leach into the body and cause harmful neurological effects,
including autism. The latest studies were published in Wednesday's Journal
of the American Medical Association. "We didn't see any indications of harm
to these kids," said Dr. Timothy DeRouen, a University of Washington
professor of biostatistics and dental public health sciences, who led a
study of 507 children, ages 8 to 10, in Portugal to determine if mercury
fillings had any neurological effects. "And we tested them repeatedly over
seven years." The other study, led by Dr. Sonja McKinlay of the New
England Research Institutes, looked at the effect on intelligence, memory
and other mental functions, and kidney function. It involved 534 children in
New England, ages 6 to 10. McKinlay said she is confident that such
fillings are safe for children in this age group, in large part because the
youngsters were given far more amalgam than the average American child gets.
"If there was no sign of any health problems from this study in these kids
with all this amalgam in their mouths ... you know it is going to be safe
for kids in the same age group in the rest of the country because they are
getting much less exposure," she said. ..."

58. "Smile! Fillings With Mercury Not Harmful, Study Says" dated 18 April
2006 from KCRA3 News.com at
<http://www.kcra.com/health/8795510/detail.html?taf=sac>
http://www.kcra.com/health/8795510/detail.html?taf=sac.

"Each year, dentists fill 70 million cavities in the U.S. with a silver
amalgam that contains mercury. Some people have wondered about the health
effects of this kind of mercury exposure in children, because it mercury can
affect brain and kidney function. But a new study in the Journal of the
American Medical Association says parents can rest easy. "There has been
increasing concern about the use of mercury-based amalgam for filling teeth,
even though we've been using exactly this compound for about 150 years,"
said Dr. Sonja McKinlay of the New England Research Institutes. McKinlay
and colleagues at the Forsyth Institute in Boston studied the effects.
Dentists and parents I think can be very assured from the results of this
study that they can continue to put silver amalgam in children's mouths to
fill cavities," she said. The five-year study involved more than 500 kids
ages 6 to 10 who had cavities but no fillings when it started. Half of the
children got white fillings with no mercury, and the other half got the
traditional amalgam. The study showed that those with the silver had higher
mercury levels in their urine, but they were still at a low level that
didn't seem to affect them. "We found that on I.Q. and other aspects of
brain function, as well as kidney function, the group that received the
mercury-based amalgam was exactly the same as those that received the
composite," McKinlay said. Andrea Kontos, whose sons were in the study, was
not surprised. Her children got the white fillings, but she would have been
fine with the other version. "I did know that amalgam fillings have
mercury, and I didn't have a problem with that because I have a whole mouth
full of it myself," she said."

59. "Autism - Worst Welfare Disaster In History" dated 18 April 2006 in
editorial by Evelyn Pringle from OpEd News.com at http://tinyurl.com/mbw6r
<http://tinyurl.com/mbw6r> or
http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_evelyn_p_060418_autism___worst_welfa
.htm
<http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_evelyn_p_060418_autism___worst_welf
a.htm> .

"Scientist and medical experts say that unless the government forces the
pharmaceutical industry to pay for the damage caused by mercury-laced
vaccines, in the not too distant future, Americans will experience the worst
welfare disaster in the history of this country. No doubt with that in
mind, eight members of Congress are calling for a new investigation into the
link between the autism epidemic and the mercury-based preservative,
thimerosal, that children received in vaccines during the 1990s, and that
some children received as late as 2003. After six years of hearings, and
testimony from medical experts, scientists, special education teachers,
school nurses, and parents of autistic children, several lawmakers say they
are convinced that a review of the vaccine database will show a causal link
between autism and thimerosal. Throughout the 1990s, when thimerosal was
most heavily used, the number of children diagnosed with autism reached
epidemic proportions. During this period, the levels of mercury that
children received were 120 times greater than safety standards set for oral
ingestion of mercury in food, according to the lawmakers. In 1999, public
health officials began asking vaccine-makers to eliminate the preservative
from childhood vaccines. But seven years later, word got out that the
preservative is still in the flu vaccine recently added to the childhood
immunization schedule, and parents, medical experts, and scientists are
outraged. In seeking an independent review, the lawmakers basically told
the Centers for Disease Control to butt out. They maintain that previous
research conducted by the agency is flawed because it "was based on data
collected prior to the removal of thimerosal and failed to explicitly
compare the outcome of children who received thimerosal-containing vaccines
with those who did not," they said. The group has also criticized the
Institute of Medicine for its 2004 public announcement that there is no link
between vaccines and autism, because the conclusion for the most part, was
based on European studies, when American children had been injected with 75%
higher levels of mercury than the European children in the studies were
exposed to. ..."

60. "DID MISSING MOTHER KILL HERSELF AND SON" dated 18 April 2006 by Tom
Latchem, Paul Byrne And Lucy Thornton from The Mirror (UK) at
<http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=16958035&method=full&siteid=94762&
headline=did-missing-mother-kill-herself-and-autistic-son-she-couldn-t-cope-
with---name_page.html>
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=16958035&method=full&siteid=94762&h
eadline=did-missing-mother-kill-herself-and-autistic-son-she-couldn-t-cope-w
ith---name_page.html.

"A despairing mum is feared to have killed herself and the autistic son she
could not cope with by leaping into a river with him cradled in her arms.
Devoted Alison Davies is thought to jumped from the Humber Bridge with
12-year-old Ryan. His body was found on Sunday, 20 miles upstream. Police
were last night still searching for single mum Alison, 40. Her distraught
neighbour Michelle Nicholls last night said Alison had become increasingly
distressed because bullies were hounding Ryan, who was on medication and had
a mental age of seven. Michelle, 36, added: "Alison loved Ryan to bits. She
was heartbroken that people didn't feel the same about him as she did.
"Some kids around here used to punch him, spit on him, call him names and
puncture his bike tyres. Some of them were about 18. One even put a bike
chain across Ryan's face. "It was so tragic. All he wanted was to be
people's friend and have someone to talk to." Alison vanished a week ago.
She left an apparent suicide note that said her family would "no longer have
to worry about her". Her note added that she felt she had failed as a
mother and was taking Ryan to the bridge near Hull, where she once lived.
..."

61. "Hopes fade for 'bridge plunge' mother" dated 19 April 2006 by WESLEY
JOHNSON from The Scotsman at <http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=589412006>
http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=589412006.

"Detectives said yesterday it was "very likely" that a mother plunged 100ft
to her death along with her 12-year-old son. Humberside Police are
investigating whether Alison Davies and her son, Ryan, died by jumping off
the Humber Bridge together. Police said it was becoming "less and less
likely" that Ms Davies would be found alive. Ms Davies has not been seen
since she and her son left her mother's home in Stockport, Cheshire, on 11
April. Ryan's body was pulled from the river on Sunday at Swinefleet Haven,
near Goole, East Yorkshire - four days after the possible incident on the
bridge. Police believe that Ms Davies, who was suffering from depression,
travelled to Humberside from Greater Manchester with the intention of "doing
herself harm". Post-mortem examinations on her son's body proved
inconclusive, but detectives said that there were no signs of physical
violence. ..."

62. "Missing mum 'needed more help to cope'" dated 19 April 2006 by Dan
McMullan from the Manchester Evening News at
<http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/men/news/s/211/211041_missing_mum_needed_
more_help_to_cope.html>
http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/men/news/s/211/211041_missing_mum_needed_m
ore_help_to_cope.html.

"Missing mum Alison Davies, whose son Ryan was found dead in the River
Humber, was "badly let down" by social services, her close friend said.
Tracy Hinds, of Alamein Drive, Romiley, met Alison five years ago at a
support group for the parents of children with learning disabilities. Ryan
had a form of autism known as Fragile X Syndrome. Tracy, a mum of five, who
has two children with learning disabilities, said: "Alison was a full-time
mum and she spent all her time with Ryan - she loved him to bits. "It was
hard though because of Ryan's condition. It can be very difficult looking
after children with disabilities. ..."

64. "A mother and son smiling at the station. Then two specks on the edge
of a bridge" dated 19 April 2006 by Martin Wainwright from The Guardian (UK)
at <http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1756371,00.html?gusrc=rss>
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1756371,00.html?gusrc=rss.

"Two grainy "ant-like" figures clamber over a security railing on the
eastern footpath of the Humber bridge. Moments later one is seen tumbling
towards the treacherous waters 30 metres (100ft) below. Eight seconds pass,
then the other figure falls too. Police specialists were trying yesterday
to enhance 30 seconds of poor-quality CCTV footage, increasingly convinced
that it shows how a desperate single mother and her 12-year-old autistic son
jumped to their deaths from Britain's biggest suspension bridge. The
footage, from a camera high on one of the bridge's twin towers, was taken
shortly after a crackly and interrupted 999 call from Alison Davies's mobile
went dead. In the call a distraught Mrs Davies, 40, asked the operator to
tell her mother "not to worry", but broke off before giving any names. The
CCTV sequence was described by detectives in Hull who believe the shifting
currents of the estuary are likely to surrender Mrs Davies's body within
days. "The figures in the film are very small - you can't identify them,"
said Detective Superintendent Colin Andrews of Humberside police. "It's very
difficult to say which of the two went first with any certainty." ..."

64. "Liver Success- Emerging Enzyme Test Can Predict Drug Side Effects"
dated 19 April 2006 by Lisa Barrett Mann from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/17/AR200604170
1274.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/17/AR2006041701
274.html.

"Adverse drug reactions -- what most of us call side effects -- can range
from annoying (headaches) to debilitating (diarrhea, vomiting) to deadly.
And certain drugs -- especially psychiatric and cardiac ones -- are more apt
to cause severe reactions. If only doctors had a way to predict who's most
susceptible. In many cases, they do, just by conducting a blood test or
cheek swab before writing a prescription. Researchers in the growing field
of pharmacogenetics -- the study of how people's genetic make-up affects
their response to medicines -- say doctors can screen for genetic variations
that often prevent liver enzymes from processing certain drugs properly.
When that occurs, a dose may not register at all -- or it may produce a
toxic reaction. Cost for the one-time screening? Between $200 and $1,400.
David Mrazek, chairman of psychiatry and psychology at the Mayo Clinic in
Rochester, Minn., says he does such testing "very regularly," especially
with children (who are particularly vulnerable to drug side effects) and
patients with a personal or family history of adverse drug reactions. Many
other doctors in his field are unfamiliar with the tests or don't use them.
To understand how these tests work, it helps to know something about the
role of both the liver and genes in drug metabolism. The liver is
responsible for regulating most chemical levels in the blood. When you
swallow a pill, the medication typically travels via the bloodstream from
your stomach to your liver. There, one or more types of liver enzyme process
the drug, breaking it down into forms that are easier for the rest of the
body to use. Some of the drug travels on through your bloodstream; the rest
is tagged as poisonous and filtered out. The most important liver enzymes
in drug metabolism are the ones in the "cytochrome P450" (CYP) family. They
process 25 percent of all drugs, including those that cause the most adverse
reactions -- antidepressants, anti-psychotics, painkillers, beta blockers
(which slow the heart rate and lower blood pressure) and drugs used to treat
attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Say you take a drug that
is mostly processed by the enzyme CYP 2D6. If your liver produces too much
of this enzyme, it could over-process the drug and flush it right out of
your body, and you'd get no therapeutic effect. If, on the other hand, your
liver produces too little of the 2D6 enzyme or none at all, the drug
wouldn't be sufficiently broken down. Instead, it would build up in your
bloodstream. You could overdose on what, for most people, would be a normal
dose. ..."

65. "Local education case argued before US Supreme Court" dated 19 April
2006 from the Poughkeepsie Journal at
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060419/NEWS0
1/60419001
<http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060419/NEWS
01/60419001> .

"A LaGrangeville family and Arlington school district officials met before
the nation's highest court today in the final step in an almost nine-year
battle over special education services. Attorneys for Ted and Pearl Murphy
and the Arlington district argued before the U.S. Supreme Court whether the
law allows parents who prevail in special education cases against school
districts to be reimbursed for the costs of experts they hire. The
controversy centers around a portion of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act, which requires states to provide a free appropriate public
education for children with disabilities. The law says "the court, in its
discretion, may award reasonable attorneys' fees as part of the costs" to
parents. Much of the debate before the justices today centered around
whether Congress intended the awarding of expert fees since it isn't spelled
out in the law."
66. "New Social Security disability rules- One goal is to more quickly
determine who qualifies as disabled. The changed system will be phased in"
dated 20 April 2006 by Larry Eichel from the Philadelphia Inquirer at
<http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/nation/14209442.htm>
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/nation/14209442.htm.



"The Social Security Administration yesterday issued new regulations
governing how eligibility for disability status is determined - minus a set
of strict deadlines that advocates had said would unfairly restrict the
rights of applicants. Jo Anne B. Barnhart, the commissioner of Social
Security, said the rules were intended to ensure "that we make the right
decision as early in the process as possible." The new system will be
phased in nationally over the next few years, starting this summer in the
six New England states. Under the existing system, an applicant's claim, if
denied at each stage, can take up to three years to resolve. Among the
features of the new system are: Creation of a quick disability
determination process intended to resolve cases of the obviously disabled
within 20 days. Establishment of a new body, the Decision Review Board, to
review eligibility decisions at its own discretion. It replaces the Appeals
Council, which heard complaints from rejected applicants. Both elements
were part of the proposed rules published last year. But the Social Security
Administration did modify several rules that would have limited the ability
of applicants to prepare for hearings in front of administration law judges
- the main venue to appeal rejection of eligibility. For instance, the
original proposal included a set of deadlines that could give a claimant as
few as 25 days to gather and submit all evidence to the administrative law
judge. Such evidence can be difficult to obtain, since it requires the
timely cooperation of medical professionals and institutions. The final
version provides at least 70 days. "With the exception of the Decision
Review Board's replacing the Appeals Council, much of the rest of it is
workable from our perspective," said Nancy Shor, executive director of the
National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives. "The
final rules are more claimaint-friendly than the proposed rules were."
Still under consideration by the Social Security Administration is a set of
proposed changes related to how an applicant's age figures into the
determination of disability. The rule changes would raise by two years the
points at which various presumptions tip in favor of the applicant. The
Social Security disability system makes $79 billion a year in monthly
payments to 8.3 million disabled workers and dependents."



67. "Flutie Foundation road race back on track" dated 20 April 2006 by
Claudia Torrens from the Metrowest Daily News at
http://www2.townonline.com/dover/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=474216
<http://www2.townonline.com/dover/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=474216> .



"The annual road race to benefit the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism
is back in Natick after a one-year hiatus, and this time the popular
Patriots' quarterback is running in it. The event, which was canceled last
year because of the change of owners at Lookout Farm, will take place on
Sunday, May 21. "This is a great event for Natick and now is back," said
Karen Pevenstein, one of the race's spokeswomen. "Doug Flutie is really
excited the race is back, and I think there will be more excitement this
year because he will run it." Runners will follow a 5-kilometer course in
South Natick that starts and ends at the Belkin Family Lookout Farm. John
Burns, the farm's new manager, said the race could draw 4,000 people this
year. The event, which began in 1999, has raised more than $190,000 for the
foundation. "Laurie and I are thrilled that the Road Race is coming back to
Natick this year," said Flutie in a press release. "It's such a fun event
that draws so many people and does a great deal to help support our
foundation. We hope to see everyone at the finish line." Pevenstein said
Flutie will also play with the Flutie Brothers Band at the Pre-Lookout Farm
fund-raiser on May 20, with proceeds also going to the foundation. The event
will be held at The Natick Center for the Arts at 7:30 p.m. After the race,
participants and spectators are invited for a cookout and awards ceremony.
The entry fee to participate in the race is $20 by mail and $22 online.
Runners can register at www.flutie5k.org. Entry forms are also available at
Lookout Farm and Eastern Bank branches, as well as health clubs and sporting
goods stores. Participants can also register the day before the race at
Lookout Farm between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. For more information on the Flutie
Brothers Band event visit www.ticketweb.com or call 508-647-0097."



68. "Selling 'pandemic flu' through a language of fear- Traditional
skepticism is missing in discussions of pandemic flu" dated 21 April 2006 by
Peter Doshi from The Christian Science Monitor at
<http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0321/p09s01-coop.html>
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0321/p09s01-coop.html.


"Americans consider the United States to be a country where debate
flourishes. Yet with regard to avian flu, hyped sound bites predominate.
When President Bush asked Congress for $7.1 billion toward "pandemic flu
preparedness," even his critics replied "not enough." Meanwhile, public
health officials seem obsessed with preparing for an impending crisis - even
before they have established that doom is truly heading our way. What is
lacking in the overall discussion about pandemic flu is disagreement,
criticism, and skepticism - once the bedrock of science - from researchers
willing to question and test the data. Further, little has been done to
educate the public on what exactly defines a pandemic. First, some facts:
According to the World Health Organization, the first "outbreak" of the H5N1
virus, also known as avian flu, killed six people in 1997 in Hong Kong.
Since then, H5N1 has allegedly killed 97 more worldwide, the majority of
whom lived in poor, rural areas and had direct contact with dead or sick
birds often kept in unsanitary conditions. These numbers do not suggest the
human population faces an insurmountable threat from this virus. Peter
Palese, flu scientist at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, told
The New York Times in a Nov. 8, 2005, article that H5N1 is a false alarm.
The virus has been "around for more than a dozen years, but it hasn't jumped
into the human population." The reason? It probably can't. Dr. Palese points
to studies of serum collected from rural Chinese populations in 1992. The
results indicated that millions of people had natural antibodies to H5N1.
This suggests they had been infected and recovered without becoming
noticeably or extremely sick - not the outcome one would expect from a virus
as feared as this one. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
estimates that 36,000 deaths in the US occur during an "average" flu season.
During the last "flu pandemic" of 1968, however, they state 34,000 Americans
died. ..."



69. "The Battle Of The States: What Happened In Illinois?" dated 21 April
2006 by F. Edward Yazbak, MD and David M. Ayoub, MD from Red Flags Daily at
<http://www.redflagsdaily.com/yazbak/2006_apr19.html>
http://www.redflagsdaily.com/yazbak/2006_apr19.html.



"The Scandinavian countries have banned the use of thimerosal in vaccines
for years. As of 2004, all pediatric vaccines used in the United Kingdom
have not contained the mercury preservative. In 1999, The U.S. Public
Health Service (PHS) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
recommended the removal of thimerosal from pediatric vaccines destined for
the American market. It was evident that when they lowered the boom, a
preservative-free hepatitis B vaccine was made available in record time.
Unfortunately, to the surprise and distress of many, there is presently a
strong movement against the banning of thimerosal from all vaccines. Seven
years after thimerosal became a matter of public controversy in the United
States, the actions of certain organizations seem to be aimed not at
expediting the removal of mercury from vaccines, but at sustaining its
presence there indefinitely. One must ask why this should be, and what the
real motives are. In the past three years, many concerned citizen groups
have attempted to convince their state legislators to outlaw at the state
level the use of thimerosal in all vaccines or at least in those aimed at
infants, young children and pregnant women. Many of the people involved have
not been touched by autism; nor do they have a personal axe to grind. They
simply do not want a mercury product injected into their children's bodies
regardless of its amount. Others did not want their pregnant wives, who were
advised to forego tuna fish wraps, to receive mercury by injection. These
individuals simply do not believe the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), the AAP or anyone else who has tried to tell them that a
little injected thimerosal is safe. Currently, the states with bans on
thimerosal in vaccines are, in alphabetical order: California, Delaware,
Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, New York and Washington. ..."



70. "Study quashes vaccine anxiety" dated 21 April 2006 by Chantel Rumble
from The Age (Australia) at
<http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/study-quashes-vaccine-anxiety/2006/0
4/20/1145344222970.html>
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/study-quashes-vaccine-anxiety/2006/04
/20/1145344222970.html.



"Fears that immunisations can cause brain damage and seizures in healthy
children have been quashed in a landmark study by Melbourne researchers.
The researchers studied a group of children who began suffering seizures
within three days of a vaccination and subsequently developed intellectual
disabilities. They found that 80 per cent had a pre-existing genetic
mutation, proving they would have developed their disabilities whether or
not they had been immunised. The findings could put an end to the
decades-long controversy about the apparent link between vaccinations and
brain damage that has resulted in some parents, carers and health
professionals opposing childhood vaccinations. The genetic mutation, which
causes a severe form of childhood epilepsy called Dravet's syndrome, usually
affects seemingly healthy children before their first birthday. The first
symptom is one long seizure, usually triggered by a fever, and over the next
three or four years the child develops different types of fits, including
staring spells, little jerks and so-called drop attacks. Intellectual
development, which is normal until the first seizure, stops, leaving the
child disabled. Like fevers, vaccinations can trigger the first seizure but
they do not cause the condition. The genetic mutation is to blame, the study
shows. Professors Sam Berkovic and Ingred Scheffer, who led the study, said
it was now clear that those who developed the syndrome soon after
immunisations would have been affected at some stage regardless. "These
people were destined to get Dravet's syndrome. The vaccination was either
coincidental or it may have led to the first seizure but we believe that it
would have happened anyway, it just might not have happened in those 48
hours," Professor Berkovic said. The study was conducted by the University
of Melbourne's Epilepsy Research Centre and published yesterday in The
Lancet Neurology. ..."



71. "Brain Training Can Change Autistic Behaviour" from 22 April 2006
edition of New Scientist magazine at <http://tinyurl.com/jlxh9>
http://tinyurl.com/jlxh9.



"Neurofeedback practice may be able to alleviate some of the symptoms of
autism, according to a pilot study on eight children with the disorder. The
technique involves hooking people up to electrodes and getting them to try
and control their brain waves. In people with autism, the "mu" wave is
thought to be dysfunctional. Since this wave is associated with "mirror
neurons" - the brain cells that underpin empathy and understanding of others
- Jaime Pineda at the University of California, San Diego, wondered if
controlling it through neurofeedback could exercise faulty mirror neurons
and improve their function. He attached sensors to the necks and heads of
eight children with autism and had them watch a video game of a racing car
going round a track. For all of the children, sitting still and
concentrating kept the

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