Le réalisateur devant un magnifique paysage

The Autism News

By Dave LewAllen | WXYZ – ABC 7

DETROIT – A citizen tip led to the arrest of a suspect in the shooting death of a Detroit father trying to protect his 13-year-old autistic son from gunfire.

35-year-old David Adams died of gun shot wounds in March of last year.

Adams came out of his home on Littlefield on Detroit’s west side after hearing shots fired. His 13-year-old son Joseph, who has autism, was on the front porch.  As Adams tried to get his son into the home he was struck by two bullets. He later died of his wounds.  His son was not injured.

Police say 28-year old Rashod Brown of Detroit was firing at a moving vehicle when his bullets hit  Adams. Moments earlier, two groups of men had started shooting at each other at the corner of Littlefield and Chalfonte.

28-year old Rashod Brown of Detroit was arrested at a vacant home on the city’s west side Monday. Brown has been arraigned on a charge of first degree murder and several other felonies. Brown is being held without bond.

A cousin of Brown was also arrested at the home on an outstanding traffic warrant.

Source: http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/region/detroit/a-man-is-being-held-in-the-murder-of-a-detroit-father

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The Autism News

By The Times Of India

An infant’s gaze may be an early, although subtle, marker for autism, says a new study.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health/Infants-gaze-an-indicator-of-autism/articleshow/6479129.cms

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The Autism News

By PR Fire

ING launches Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan

Three enhanced protection benefits for more comprehensive coverage

Crises can strike anyone at any time and there is no simpler way to shield oneself against critical illness. In response to market needs, ING Life is pleased to launch its new critical illness plan, Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan. It provides three enhanced protection benefits1 with gradually increasing Crisis Benefits, and it covers 44 Critical and 16 Special Diseases2 up to age 100 with peace of mind to cover the entire life of the insured.

The plan features a maximum of 3 gradually increasing Crisis Benefits1 (including 3 times Cancer claims benefit): For the second and third Crisis Benefits, the protection will be automatically upgraded to 110% and 120% of Sum Insured respectively, assuring a stronger and more comprehensive protection as clients grow older. Upon the payment of the first Crisis Benefit from the Basic Plan, the premium of the Easy Defender Multiple Benefit Rider will also be waived until the expiry of the Rider to enable more financial flexibility.

In addition to the coverage of 44 Critical illnesses, the plan also fully safeguards clients against 10 Adult Special Diseases (including Carcinoma-in-Situ, Angioplasty and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus) and 6 Juvenile Special Diseases (such as Autism, Kawasaki Disease, Sever Asthma, etc.) to cater for the needs of different age ranges.

Clients can choose among 10, 15 or 20 year3 premium payment terms, and they can also pay level premiums to ease their financial planning. For added protection, the plan also offers Guaranteed Cash Value payable upon surrender or maturity of the policy. Beyond this, a Special Bonus will be payable when the plan has been in force for more than 5 years upon crisis claim, death claim, surrender or maturity of the policy.

As part of INGs promise of care, second medical opinion service is also available to the Insured of Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan and Easy Defender Multiple Benefit Rider, in the event of a diagnosis of suffering from one of the Crises covered.

From now to September 10, 2010, clients are entitled to supermarket coupons of up to HK$1,000 upon any successful application of Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan together with Easy Defender Multiple Benefit Rider with an annualized premium of HK$8,000 or above4 . The coupon reward will be doubled for existing policyholders with any ING Critical Illness protection plans or riders4. Please contact us for more information.

To promote the product launch, ING Life has rolled out an advertising campaign deploying a variety of media mix, including tram body, tram shelter, bus body, outdoor billboard and full page advertisements.

Print Advertisement for Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan

EnquiryG3123 3123

1.Only applicable to insuring both Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan and Easy Defender Multiple Benefit Rider at the same time, or insuring Easy Defender Multiple Benefit Rider to the attachable Basic Plans.
2.Only the Basic Plan provides coverage for 10 Adult Special Diseases from age 18 up to age 85 and 6 Juvenile Special Diseases from age 1 (15 days) to age 17.
3.Only applicable to Easy Defender Critical Illness Insurance Plan.
4.Terms and Conditions apply. Please refer to the promotion materials of Easy Defender Customer Promotion.

This description is for reference only. For a complete explanation of the terms and conditions, please refer to the policy.

Press enquiries: ING

Carolyn Chung Tel: +852 2850 2951 Email: carolyn.kw.chung@ing.com.hk
Gladys Chai Tel: +852 2850 2997 Email: gladys.ym.chai@ing.com.hk

ING Group is one of the first integrated financial service providers in the world resulting from a full merger of the largest insurance company in the Netherlands with one of the countrys largest banks. Its roots could be traced back to the year 1845 when The Netherlands Insurance Company was established. The Group is active in the fields of banking, investments, life insurance and retirement services in more than 40 countries. With its substantial worldwide experience and nearly 107,000 employees, ING Group provides a full range of integrated financial services to more than 85 million customers globally and has total assets of EUR 1,164 billion*.

Its insurance business operations in Hong Kong include: Life Insurance V Since its establishment in 1984, ING Life has always been committed to offering customers a comprehensive range of quality insurance products and services. The companys extensive portfolio of insurance products – which includes individual life, medical and employee benefits schemes – is tailored to meet customers needs throughout the different stages of their lives.

General Insurance V Established in 1989, ING General provides quality services and offers most types of non-life insurance products to individuals and businesses in the local market.

Pension Trust V ING Pension Trust is committed to contributing its expertise to provide quality pension trust services to corporate customers.

Financial Planning V Established in 2002, ING Financial Planning is committed to setting the standard as a market leader in Independent Financial Advice, and attracting the best financial advisors in the industry to deliver quality financial planning advice to clients. The customer-centric focus of INGFP ensures that clients receive the best solution from advisors, based on a broad suite of products from many companies.

* Source: ING Group Annual Report 2009

Source: http://www.prfire.co.uk/press-release/ing-launches-easy-defender-critical-illness-insurance-plan-25514.html

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Kyle Warren, at 6 years old.

The Autism News

By Duff Wilson

OPELOUSAS, La. — At 18 months, Kyle Warren started taking a daily antipsychotic drug on the orders of a pediatrician trying to quell the boy’s severe temper tantrums.

Thus began a troubled toddler’s journey from one doctor to another, from one diagnosis to another, involving even more drugs. Autism, bipolar disorder, hyperactivity, insomnia, oppositional defiant disorder. The boy’s daily pill regimen multiplied: the antipsychotic Risperdal, the antidepressant Prozac, two sleeping medicines and one for attention-deficit disorder. All by the time he was 3.

He was sedated, drooling and overweight from the side effects of the antipsychotic medicine. Although his mother, Brandy Warren, had been at her “wit’s end” when she resorted to the drug treatment, she began to worry about Kyle’s altered personality. “All I had was a medicated little boy,” Ms. Warren said. “I didn’t have my son. It’s like, you’d look into his eyes and you would just see just blankness.”

Today, 6-year-old Kyle is in his fourth week of first grade, scoring high marks on his first tests. He is rambunctious and much thinner. Weaned off the drugs through a program affiliated with Tulane University that is aimed at helping low-income families whose children have mental health problems, Kyle now laughs easily and teases his family.

Ms. Warren and Kyle’s new doctors point to his remarkable progress — and a more common diagnosis for children of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder — as proof that he should have never been prescribed such powerful drugs in the first place.

Kyle now takes one drug, Vyvanse, for his attention deficit. His mother shared his medical records to help document a public glimpse into a trend that some psychiatric experts say they are finding increasingly worrisome: ready prescription-writing by doctors of more potent drugs to treat extremely young children, even infants, whose conditions rarely require such measures.

More than 500,000 children and adolescents in America are now taking antipsychotic drugs, according to a September 2009 report by the Food and Drug Administration. Their use is growing not only among older teenagers, when schizophrenia is believed to emerge, but also among tens of thousands of preschoolers.

A Columbia University study recently found a doubling of the rate of prescribing antipsychotic drugs for privately insured 2- to 5-year-olds from 2000 to 2007. Only 40 percent of them had received a proper mental health assessment, violating practice standards from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

“There are too many children getting on too many of these drugs too soon,” Dr. Mark Olfson, professor of clinical psychiatry and lead researcher in the government-financed study, said.

Such radical treatments are indeed needed, some doctors and experts say, to help young children with severe problems stay safe and in school or day care. In 2006, the F.D.A. did approve treating children as young as 5 with Risperdal if they had autistic disorder and aggressive behavior, self-injury tendencies, tantrums or severe mood swings. Two other drugs, Seroquel from AstraZeneca and Abilify from Bristol-Myers Squibb, are permitted for youths 10 or older with bipolar disorder.

But many doctors say prescribing them for younger and younger children may pose grave risks to development of both their fast-growing brains and their bodies. Doctors can legally prescribe them for off-label use, including in preschoolers, even though research has not shown them to be safe or effective for children. Boys are far more likely to be medicated than girls.

Dr. Ben Vitiello, chief of child and adolescent treatment and preventive research at the National Institute of Mental Health, says conditions in young children are extremely difficult to diagnose properly because of their emotional variability. “This is a recent phenomenon, in large part driven by the misperception that these agents are safe and well tolerated,” he said.

Even the most reluctant prescribers encounter a marketing juggernaut that has made antipsychotics the nation’s top-selling class of drugs by revenue, $14.6 billion last year, with prominent promotions aimed at treating children. In the waiting room of Kyle’s original child psychiatrist, children played with Legos stamped with the word Risperdal, made by Johnson & Johnson. It has since lost its patent on the drug and stopped handing out the toys.

Greg Panico, a company spokesman, said the Legos were not intended for children to play with — only as a promotional item.

Cheaper to Medicate

Dr. Lawrence L. Greenhill, president of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, concerned about the lack of research, has recommended a national registry to track preschoolers on antipsychotic drugs for the next 10 years. “Psychotherapy is the key to the treatment of preschool children with severe mental disorders, and antipsychotics are adjunctive therapy — not the other way around,” he said.

But it is cheaper to medicate children than to pay for family counseling, a fact highlighted by a Rutgers University study last year that found children from low-income families, like Kyle, were four times as likely as the privately insured to receive antipsychotic medicines.

Texas Medicaid data obtained by The New York Times showed a record $96 million was spent last year on antipsychotic drugs for teenagers and children — including three unidentified infants who were given the drugs before their first birthdays.

In addition, foster care children seem to be medicated more often, prompting a Senate panel in June to ask the Government Accountability Office to investigate such practices.

In the last few years, doctors’ concerns have led some states, like Florida and California, to put in place restrictions on doctors who want to prescribe antipsychotics for young children, requiring a second opinion or prior approval, especially for those on Medicaid. Some states now report prescriptions are declining as a result.

A study released in July by 16 state Medicaid medical directors, which once had the working title “Too Many, Too Much, Too Young,” recommended that more states require second opinions, outside consultation or other methods to assure proper prescriptions. The F.D.A. has also strengthened warnings about using some of these drugs in treating children.

No Medical Reason

Kyle was rescued from his medicated state through a therapy program called Early Childhood Supports and Services, established in Louisiana through a confluence of like-minded child psychiatrists at Tulane, Louisiana State University and the state. It surrounds troubled children and their parents with social and mental health support services.

Dr. Mary Margaret Gleason, a professor of pediatrics and child psychiatry at Tulane who treated Kyle from ages 3 to 5 as he was weaned off the heavy medications, said there was no valid medical reason to give antipsychotic drugs to the boy, or virtually any other 2-year-old. “It’s disturbing,” she said.

Dr. Gleason says Kyle’s current status proves he probably never had bipolar disorder, autism or psychosis. His doctors now say Kyle’s tantrums arose from family turmoil and language delays, not any of the diagnoses used to justify antipsychotics.

“I will never, ever let my children be put on these drugs again,” said Ms. Warren, 28, choking back tears. “I didn’t realize what I was doing.”

Dr. Edgardo R. Concepcion, the first child psychiatrist to treat Kyle, said he believed the drugs could help bipolar disorder in little children. “It’s not easy to do this and prescribe this heavy medication,” he said in an interview. “But when they come to me, I have no choice. I have to help this family, this mother. I have no choice.”

Ms. Warren conceded that she resorted to medicating Kyle because she was unprepared for parenthood at age 22, living in difficult circumstances, sometimes distracted. “It was complicated,” she said. “Very tense.”

Behavior Problems

Kyle was a healthy baby physically, but he was afraid of some things. He spent hours lining up toys. When upset, he screamed, threw objects, even hit his head on the wall or floor — not uncommon for toddlers, but frightening.

“I’d bring him to the doctor and the doctor would say, ‘You just need to discipline him,’ ” Ms. Warren said. “How can you discipline a 6-month-old?”

When Kyle’s behavior worsened after his brother was born, Ms. Warren turned to a pediatrician, Dr. Martin J. deGravelle.

“Within five minutes of sitting with him, he looked at me and said, ‘He has autism, there’s no doubt about it,’ ” Ms. Warren said.

Dr. deGravelle’s clinic notes say Kyle was hyperactive, prone to tantrums, spoke only three words and “does not interact well with strangers.”

He prescribed Risperdal. At the time, Risperdal was approved by the F.D.A. only for adults with schizophrenia or acute manic episodes. The following year it was approved for certain children, 5 and older, with autism and extremely aggressive behavior. It has never been approved by the F.D.A. for use in children younger than 5, although doctors may legally prescribe it as an off-label use.

“Kyle at the time was very aggressive and easily agitated, so you try to find medication that can make him more easily controlled, because you can’t reason with an 18-month-old,” Dr. deGravelle said in a telephone interview. But Kyle was not autistic — according to several later evaluations, including one that Dr. deGravelle arranged with a neurologist. Kyle did not have the autistic child’s core deficit of social interaction, Dr. Gleason said. Instead, he craved more positive attention from his mother.

“He had trouble communicating,” Dr. Gleason said. “He didn’t have people to listen to him.”

After the neurologist review, the diagnosis changed to “oppositional defiant disorder” and the Risperdal continued.

“Yes, I did ask for it,” Ms. Warren said. “But I was at my wit’s end, and I didn’t know what else to do.”

Dr. deGravelle referred her to Dr. Concepcion, who in turn diagnosed Kyle’s condition as bipolar disorder.

“Some children, when they come to me, the parents are really so frustrated,” Dr. Concepcion said in a phone interview. “Especially the mothers are so scared or desperate in getting help. Their children are really acting psychotic.”

Dr. Concepcion also spoke with Dr. Charles H. Zeanah, a Tulane medical professor, who disagreed with both the diagnosis and the treatment. “I have never seen a preschool child with bipolar disorder in 30 years as a child psychiatrist specializing in early childhood mental health,” Dr. Zeanah said.

More Pills

“It’s a controversial diagnosis, I agree with that,” said Dr. Concepcion. “But if you will commit yourself in giving these children these medicines, you have to have a diagnosis that supports your treatment plan. You can’t just give a nondiagnosis and give them the atypical antipsychotic.”

He also prescribed four more pills.

Kyle’s third birthday photo shows a pink-cheeked boy who had ballooned to 49 pounds. Obesity and diabetes are childhood risks of antipsychotics. Kyle smiles at the camera. He is sedated.

“His shell was there, but he wasn’t there,” Ms. Warren said. “And I didn’t like that.”

Dr. Concepcion referred Kyle to the early childhood support program, which has helped about 3,000 preschoolers from low-income families at risk for mental health problems since 2002.

His speech improved. He threw fewer tantrums. “They started working with us as a family,” said Ms. Warren, who also received parenting advice. “That helps.”

Kyle’s treatment was directed by Dr. Gleason, a Columbia medical graduate who had led a team that wrote 2007 practice guidelines for psychopharmacological treatment of very young children.

“Families sometimes feel the need for a quick fix,” Dr. Gleason said. “That’s often the prescription pad. But I’m concerned that when a child sees someone who prescribes but doesn’t do therapy, they’re closing the door that can make longer-lasting change.”

Off most drugs, Kyle started losing weight and his behavior improved. Ms. Warren’s life also improved. She met a man and they moved into their own house five miles out of Opalousas, a town of 25,000. They were married last Saturday.

At their home recently, Kyle and his brother, Jade, ran and played while their baby sister watched from a playpen. Their clothes were neatly folded in a shared bedroom. They often responded “Yes, ma’am” or “Yes, sir.”

“They’re respectful, but they’re hyper kids,” Ms. Warren said. “Once he came off the medication, he’s Kyle. He’s an intelligent person. He’s loud. He’s funny. He’s smart. He’s bouncy. I mean, there’s never a dull moment. He has a few little behavior issues. But he’s like any other normal 6-year-old.”

Kyle paused to show a reading report card from the end of his kindergarten year, with an A grade.

“Awesome job, Kyle!” his kindergarten teacher wrote.

Source: http://www.gainesville.com/article/20100902/ZNYT01/9023012/1003/NEWS#

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The Autism News

By Hoe Yeen Nie | ChannelNewsAsia

SINGAPORE: Educators say having specialised schools for students in the Normal Technical stream will allow for more innovative teaching.

The two new schools will be modelled after Northlight and Assumption Pathway Schools, which take in those who failed their Primary School Leaving Examinations.

At Northlight School, hands-on learning is taken literally.

In Maths class for example, students work on interactive ‘smart boards’, which allows them to visualise the problem. They also use a ‘smart table’, where they have to solve simple sums by placing their fingers on the touchscreen.

This approach has helped students like Lee Chuan Jie who used to dread Maths.

Chuan Jie dropped out of school after failing his PSLE once, but since attending Northlight, he’s grown more confident, and says he now has more faith in his abilities.

“For primary school, we focused mainly on theories, and the teacher is like, tell you the question and then start the exercise. But in this school we do a lot of hands-on and practicals. The lesson is much more interesting [and] easier to learn.”

Northlight’s principal Chua Yen Ching says the ‘smart table’ also teaches the students to work together as a team.

A lot of thought has been given to create an encouraging learning environment in Northlight. For example, students don’t have to feel shy about raising their hands in class. Instead, they are given a card to indicate if they understand or don’t understand a lesson. Even school rules are phrased positively.

Students are also given space to express themselves, and music and art are key elements in the curriculum.

And it’s through this that Mohammad Abdillah discovered his talent in drawing, dance and drama.

The Secondary 4 student says, “That’s the good thing about Northlight. They teach us what it means to be concerned for other people, what is means to be a bully, and how to help classmates if they don’t understand their homework.”
Abdillah now hopes to go on to ITE or take a course at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.

Northlight was started in 2007, and about one-third of students have gone on to the Institute of Technical Education.

“When students come to join us, they actually have very low self-esteem because of the repeated failures. But we’re very heartened that the teachers are able to help them with the different teaching strategies to be engaged in learning, so they enjoy coming to school,” said principal Chua.

She added, “In fact, they’re able to help them experience different types of successes. Now they’re more confident, so they’re doing well in ITE as well as in the workplace.

“The two new specialised schools for the N(T) students, they are the ones who will pass the PSLE, and I can imagine how much more we can do with them.”

Normal Technical students are known to be kinesthetic learners where they learn better by doing and mainstream schools are widening their scope, by partnering the ITE to offer more industry-related training.

Mainstream schools like Si Ling Secondary are also widening their scope and partnering the ITE to offer more industry-related training.

At Si Ling Secondary, students may choose between “Elements of Business Skills” or “Computer and Networking”, both N-level subjects that they take in Secondary 3.

Justin Seah was diagnosed with mild autism in Primary school used to be extremely shy but he has since found his voice by working with his hands.

Justin regularly tops his class and hopes to further his studies.

“I also like to learn more new things about computers too, so that I’ll be able to do better in the future,” he said.

60 percent of the Computer and Networking course is based on practical knowledge.

Mustafah Sakaran, an ITE lecturer seconded to Si Ling Secondary says lessons are broken up into smaller tasks, with each level increasing in difficulty, so that it’s less daunting for the students.

“When they are able to do the practical, in the end, we will encourage them to get better results by improving in their theory. So it ends up as a complete learning process,” he said.

Source: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1078749/1/.html

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“What Would You Do?”
The Face of Autism
written by Shelia King
sung by Tobi Lee of Mustang Sally

Source: YouTube

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Recorrido de estudiantes con discapacidad por la empresa Krispy Kreme. M. FREYRÍA