Development of Autism Research Studies

Participants: 2-5 year old boys with Autism (Autistic Disorder and PDD-NOS, all levels of functioning) are needed to participate in the following study.

Children should be medication-free (this includes prescription and over-the-counter medications) within 48 hours of sample collection and appointments. In addition, none of the children should have any impairments in vision, hearing (corrected vision and hearing are okay), neurological issues, or comorbid impairments that would interfere with their ability to participate in the study.

Aim: The current study is aimed at examining pupil and salivary responses, using non-invasive means (i.e., nothing is attached to the child) to investigate neurological indicators of Autism and eventually used to identify Autism early in life, and to determine if pupil and gaze location responses can be used as an alternative method to investigate language skills in children who are difficult to test.

To participate: You will first be mailed a saliva kit, asking you to collect saliva samples from your child on two separate days of your choosing in your home environment and complete a sleep survey. Then, once the samples are collected, two lab appointments will be scheduled for you and your child to come to our off-campus lab in Lawrence Kansas. During these sessions, we will take an additional saliva sample and examine pupil and eye gaze responses to social and non-social scenes and known and unknown words. In addition, your child will be given a series of standardized tests that include a receptive language assessment, a cognitive (IQ) test, and an autism diagnostic assessment; you will receive the results of all assessments.

Compensation for time and travel: You will receive $50 for returning the home collected saliva samples and sleep survey. Then, you will receive an additional $40 for each lab visit, totaling $130 for participation in this research project.

Please either e-mail or call (785) 312-5345 our laboratory to inquire about the study or to enroll your child for participation.

We sincerely hope that you will consider participation, Christa J. Anderson, PhD cjanders@ku.edu.

OASIS - Online and Applied System of Intervention Skills We’re evaluating a training program based on Applied Behavior Analysis for parents of children with autism. We want to know how effective this training program is in teaching you how to develop your child’s independent skills and manage his/her challenging behaviors. Families participating in this project will go through the complete training program. Parents will complete web-based training modules and apply the skills learned in the modules with guidance from a trained clinician. The parent coach will provide immediate feedback about your use of these skills while you work one-on-one with your child during therapy sessions. The parent coach will talk with you via a live audio/video feed at an off-site clinic. The training program will take approximately sixteen weeks to complete. Throughout the program, we’ll assess your child’s behaviors using standardized assessments; we’ll also assess your learning and satisfaction with the training program.

For more information see: Evaluation of the Online and Applied System for Intervention Skills (OASIS) Training Program for Parents of Children with Autism and Frequently Asked Questions.

Department of Occupational Therapy Education, University of Kansas Medical Center

We are conducting a study to evaluate ways to increase participation in everyday activities of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) through sensory-based interventions.

We need children 3-10 years old with ASD and their families.

Participants will receive ten hours of free occupational therapy services.

In Part 1 of the study, we ask families to complete a few forms and questionnaires; it will take no more than two hours to finish all the materials.

In Part 2 of the study, a licensed occupational therapist will meet with the family ten times over the course of eight weeks. The therapist will work with the family on implementing sensory based interventions. Meetings will occur in the family’s home/natural environment and, if the family prefers, over the phone/internet.

In Part 3 of the study, we ask the family to complete the same forms from Part 1 of the study.

Participants will be paid for completion of this study.

If you are interested in learning more about this study please contact

Jennifer Tanquary at 913-588-7198 or jtanquary@kumc.edu.

Prader-Willi Syndrome and Early-onset Morbid Obesity Natural History Clinical Protocol

The prevalence of obese children in the United States is increasing rapidly. Recent estimates show that approximately 1 in 3 children are overweight or obese. The purpose of our study is to identify the natural history of those with Early onset Morbid Obesity (EMO) and individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), the most common known cause of life threatening obesity. We hope to learn more about the genetic causes of obesity and co-morbidities of Prader-Willi syndrome when compared with EMO. Eligible participants must have an onset of obesity before 4 years of age or confirmed genetic diagnosis of Prader-Willi syndrome to enroll in the study. Individuals of all ages are eligible. For more information, please contact, Merlin G. Butler, MD, PhD: 913-588-1873, mbutler4@kumc.edu, Erin L. Youngs, MS: 913-588-1871, eyoungs@kumc.edu or Marilyn Logan, RN: 913-588-1315, mlogan@kumc.edu eyoungs@kumc.edu.

Project Fast: Fibromyalgia and Sleep Treatment

Research indicates that sleep disturbances might be maintaining or intensifying some of the symptoms some of the symptoms of fibromyalgia. Project Fast is looking for women, 18 years or older with a confirmed idagnosis of fibromyalgia. Potential participants will undergo diagnostic tests for sleep problems and those who have sleep disordered breathing will be randomly assigned to one of two conditions: active CPAP or a sham CPAP control condition. Weekly changes n fibromyalgia symptoms and sleep patterns will be monitored. Participants may be compensated up $360 for participating in this study. If you are interested, please tell your physician or call (785) 864-3239 to speak to a research assistant. Principal investigator: Nancy Hamilton, Ph.D., University of Kansas. Co-Investigators: Kevin Latinis, M.D. and Suzanne Stevens, M.D., University of Kansas Medical Center. Co-investigator: Daniel Taylor, Ph.D., University of North Texas. Sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.