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59 active trials for Autism

Studying Childhood-onset Behavioral, Psychiatric, and Developmental Disorders

Background: - Many psychiatric, behavioral, and developmental disorders are genetic. This means that they tend to run in families. Some begin in childhood, while others do not appear until adulthood. Researchers want to look at people of all ages who have these disorders that started in childhood. They will also look at relatives of people with these disorders. This information will allow doctors to learn more about childhood behavioral problems and how they are inherited. It may also help doctors treat those disorders. Objectives: - To study the onset and treatment of childhood behavioral, psychiatric, and developmental disorders. Eligibility: Individuals of any age who have a psychiatric, autism spectrum, or developmental disorder, or other behavioral problems. Family members of individuals with the above disorders. This group may include parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles, cousins, and children. Design: Participants will be screened with a medical history and physical exam. They will have a psychiatric history with tests of thinking, judgment, and behavior. Blood and urine samples will be collected. Brain imaging scans will be performed to look at brain function. They may have a spinal tap to collect cerebrospinal fluid. Relatives will have a medical history and physical exam. They will also have a psychiatric history with tests of thinking, judgment, and behavior. Blood and urine samples will be collected. Brain imaging scans will be performed to look at brain function. A relative s exams may reveal a behavioral or other disorder. If so, he or she may re-enroll on the study as a person with the disorder.

Start: December 2012

Natural History Study of Individuals With Autism and Germline Heterozygous PTEN Mutations

The purpose of this study is to determine cross-sectional and longitudinal medical, behavioral, and cognitive differences between PTEN ASD and other groups, as well as to identify cognitive, neural systems, and molecular biomarkers specific to PTEN ASD. In addition, this study will be creating and maintaining a biorepository and linked phenotypic database for PTEN ASD.

Start: May 2015

Evaluating Efficacy of GuessWhat Mobile App Therapy for Children With Autism

The following study aims to understand the efficacy of the mobile game platform, GuessWhat, in delivering behavioral therapy to children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). GuessWhat is a mobile application (available for free for iOS and Android) which contains a suite of games: pro-social charades, emotion guessing, and quiz. Participant families will use their personal smartphones to download the app and play it with their child according to a predetermined regimen.

Start: June 2021

Trial of Center-Based vs. In-Home Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) in Autism

The aim of this clinical trial is to compare the efficacy of a 16-week center-based Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT-C) versus home-based Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT-H) in targeting social communication deficits in young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with significant language delay. The two groups will also be compared to a control group that consists of children who are receiving treatment as usual (TAU).

Start: January 2022

A Center Based Study of Pivotal Response Treatment for Preschoolers With Autism

The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of pivotal response training (PRT) in an intensive center-based environment to treat social communication deficits in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Start: May 2019

Biomarkers for Autism and ADHD in Children

Autism (ASD) is one of the frequent neurodevelopmental disorders that children would occur. Many studies have shown that individuals with Autism are more common to experience significant gastrointestinal problems than other individuals. Symptoms include constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain and gastric reflux. A recent study with 50 children with ASD, 50 children with other developmental disabilities and 50 healthy control children, it found that 70% of ASD children had presented with GI symptoms, compared with 42% of developmental disabilities children and 28% of developing children, it is believed that ASD children will have a distinctive microbial pattern in the stool. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is another neurodevelopmental and neurobehavioral disorder. A study found that ADHD individuals experience significantly higher rate of stomach pain and bowel problems than other control individuals. It is suggested that the microbiota in the stool of ADHD children might be different. Genetic study also found that if a child has a sibling with ADHD, the risk of developing ADHD is three to four times higher than that of children with siblings without ADHD.

Start: May 2021

Sensory Adapted Dental Environments to Enhance Oral Care for Children

The goal of this project is to examine the efficacy of a sensory adapted dental environment (SADE) for children who have difficulty tolerating oral care in the dental clinic. The investigators hypothesize that adapting the sensory environment in the dental office by modifying the sounds, sights,and tactile experiences will result in decreased anxiety, increased cooperation, and fewer behavior problems for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). This has the potential to contribute to increased child comfort as well as safer, more efficient, and less costly treatment for a large population, as potentially more than one-fourth of all children may benefit from a sensory adapted dental environment.

Start: May 2015

Achieving Steady Work Among Adults With Autism Through Specialized Employment Program

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have significantly higher levels of unemployment and underemployment compared to their typically developing peers and all other groups with neurodevelopmental disorders, even though major companies that have employed and trained young people with ASD acclaim their significant innovations in their companies. The investigators hope to examine the effects of specialized employment support programs, over current traditional vocational rehabilitation approaches, for adults with ASD on their ability to maintain steady employment and overall benefit to the organizations at which they will be employed. The investigators predict that Stanford University's Neurodiversity at Work (NaW) Program will improve employment outcomes and positively impact the overall quality of life of individuals with ASD in this program. The investigators hope that the findings of the study will lead to the advancement of programs aimed to support individuals with ASD.

Start: September 2019

A Realist Evaluation of Autism ServiCe Delivery (RE-ASCeD)

Diagnostic pathways for children with possible autism. Which work best, for whom, when, and at what cost? Autism is a complex neuro-behaviour condition. People with autism have difficulty with social interaction and in communication with others. They may struggle with change, and repeat actions over and over. Life may be very anxious or stressful. The signs of autism can occur at any age but often appear in the first two years of life. There is no one type of autism, but many, so the condition is now called autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Autism is lifelong but this study is only about children. Caring for a child with autism can be difficult and can sometimes be tough on the whole family. This project aims to guide the people who plan services for families and children. Different teams and services that do autism assessments will help us. The investigators will ask teams and services: What speeds up diagnosis? What delays diagnosis? The study will be in four work packages: The investigators will review research in the UK and abroad to find evidence and ideas that will help speed up diagnosis. The investigators will survey professionals who work for the specialist teams who diagnose autism. The survey will be about each step in the process and ask which professionals get involved. The investigators will ask about the number of children they see and the time it usually takes to reach a diagnosis. This will give us a picture of the national situation. After the national survey, the investigators will select around six or eight teams. These teams will be using different and innovative approaches. The investigators will study those approaches. The investigators will talk to clinical staff, managers, referrers, parents and young people. Parents and young people will have gone through the diagnostic process. The investigators will ask parents and young people about their experiences and views. The investigators will review the steps in the diagnosis process for about 70 children in each service. The investigators will find out how long each assessment takes, how much clinical time it takes, and how much it costs. The investigators will compare findings across teams and services. The investigators will have national meetings with autism experts and patient groups. The investigators will show them our findings. These groups will agree recommendations for practice. Clinical teams, service managers, commissioners, parents' groups, and NHS England will receive recommendations. The research team has specialist expertise in autism, health services, economics, and statistics. The team includes public and NHS England partners. This will ensure the investigators take account of the needs of families and the investigators send the findings to people who plan services.

Start: November 2019

Pilot Trial of Pregnenolone in Autism

This is a research study to examine the tolerability and effectiveness of pregnenolone in individuals with autism. Pregnenolone is a naturally occurring steroid hormone in the brain that has been implicated in treating various psychiatric conditions. The investigators hope to learn the effects and safety of using pregnenolone in reducing irritability and sensitivity to sensory differences and improving social communication in individuals with autism. The investigators hope by studying the effects of pregnenolone in more detail, the investigators can design better ways to treat individuals with autism.

Start: January 2016

Familial Fecal Microbiota Transplant for the Treatment of Subjects With Autism Spectrum Disorders

This is an open-label clinical trial to evaluate the benefits of familial fecal microbiota transplant following a 6-week treatment with Vancomycin in minor and adult subjects with ASD for treatment of social deficits and language delays.

Start: June 2021

Sensors for Communication for Persons Who Cannot Communicate Unequivocally

Some persons with intellectual disability or comprehensive cerebral palsy cannot communicate unequivocally how they are, how they react to situations and people, whether they are in pain or experience discomfort, anger or fear. Their modes of communication (sounds, grimacing etc) may be unintelligible or ambiguous to their caregivers. With the use of heart and/or respiration monitors the investigators aim to give these persons a means to communicate their immediate reactions or responses. The respiration monitor is meant to register sleep at night, so that the participants can communicate whether they have slept well or not the previous night.

Start: February 2020

Effects of Animal-assisted Therapy on the Physical Function and Communication of Adults With Autism

The aim is to evaluate the effects of a dog-assisted therapy program on physical function and communication in a sample comprised of 24 adults with autism spectrum disorder. The sample will be divided into 2 groups, a control group and an experimental group. Changes after 10 weeks (20 sessions) will be compared between-groups.

Start: April 2021

Testing a CBT Program for Anxiety in Teenagers With Autism: A Feasibility Study

The objective is to investigate the feasibility of a newly developed manualised group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) programme for anxiety in 15 teenagers (aged 13-17 years) with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Our aim is to focus primarily on acceptability and compliance with the program with some investigation of treatment effects on anxiety diagnosis and anxiety symptoms.

Start: June 2021

Using Serious Games to Improve Social Skills in Autism

The investigators will conduct a small-scale randomized control trial comparing the intervention game to an active control game, and will assess outcomes at multiple time points (pre-, post-, 6-month follow-up). These outcomes will include a wide range of behaviors that are measured along a continuum from controlled lab-based tasks to uncontrolled, real-world social interactions between dyads.

Start: December 2019

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Restricted and Repetitive Behavior in ASD

Investigating the efficacy of a form of TMS called theta-burst stimulation for restricted and repetitive behavior in ASD.

Start: January 2021

UAB AIM Virtual Magic Camp

The magic camp for children with disabilities at UAB has been conducted yearly since 2018. This year, because of the Covid-19, the magic camp will be conducted online. The virtual magic camp will start in the beginning of June . It will run for 4 weeks. After one cohort, there will be another cohort starts in the beginning of July . Each cohort will have about 30 children with disabilities. Two occupational therapy graduate students will teach each child via Zoom to learn magic hand trick 3 times a week, one hour each. No studies evaluate the psychological benefits of learning magic tricks via online in children with disabilities. Therefore, this study is to evaluate the psychological being of the children participants after completing a virtual magic camp.

Start: April 2021

A Non-Interventional Pilot Study to Explore the Role of Gut Flora in Autism

This study seeks to correlate microbiome sequencing data with information provided by patients and their medical records regarding autism.

Start: March 2020

The FBRI VTC Neuromotor Research Clinic

The FBRI VTC Neuromotor Research Clinic was established and opened in May of 2013 to provide intensive therapeutic services to individuals with motor impairment secondary to neuromotor disorders. It is direct by Dr. Stephanie DeLuca and based on the principles surrounding ACQUIREc Therapy. ACQUIREc Therapy is an evidenced-based approach to pediatric constraint-induced movement therapy, which refers to a multi-component form of therapy that is focused on helping children who have asymmetric motor abilities between the two sides of the body. Historically, ACQUIREc Therapy has the unimpaired or less impaired upper extremity constrained (by a cast or a splint) while also receiving active therapy from a specially trained therapist who shapes new skills and functional activities with the child's more impaired upper extremity but who is also a licensed Occupational or Physical Therapist (OT/PT). Therapy dosages are high much higher than tradition OT or PT - often lasting many hours per day, up to 6 hours a day, 5 days a week, for 2-4 weeks. Investigators have developed further treatments based on the same principles of intensive services combined with behavior shaping for other areas of the body that are also affected by weakness (e.g., the leg and trunk) also, but which usually do not involve constraint. These have been more generally labeled ACQUIRE Therapy. All forms involve intensive, play-based therapy for children with asymmetric motor impairments of the arms and hands. The primary focus of treatment is to facilitate the acquisition of new motor skills in the child's weaker body parts through high levels of intensive therapy using scientifically-based behavioral guidelines. Therapy is also delivered in naturalistic environments. ACQUIREc Therapy as a treatment method has been tested in two randomized controlled trials, and a specific manual for its implementation has been developed. Dr. (s) Ramey and DeLuca previously founded a similar clinic, The Pediatric Neuromotor Research Clinic, at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where Dr. DeLuca directed the research clinic for 13 years and oversaw the implementation of the ACQUIREc Therapy treatment protocol in more than 400 cases. This research will involve analyzing and interpreting the clinical data of children going through clinical procedures at the FBRI VTC Neuromotor Research Clinic. All participation is voluntary and no children will denied services if families choose not to participate.

Start: January 2013

Examining the Effects of a Job Entry Intervention

The current study will examine the efficacy of a virtual reality (VR) intervention entitled "Virtual Reality Job Interview Training (VR-JIT)" as well as a newly developed Kessler Foundation STRength IDentification and Expression tool (VR-STRIDE) with adolescents diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

Start: September 2019