Researchers from both UNC and Caltech joined forces to study the facial expressions of children with autism. Many parents of children with autism evaluate facial expressions differently in ways that are strikingly similar to autistic patients themselves. Parents were subjected to tests in which they were asked to make use of the face to judge emotions. Many of the facial examples shown to the parents were slightly obscured, showing only a part of the face. They were then asked to read what was available to them to judge the expression of the face.

Govenor Blagojevich recently expaneded HB 4225 to include the language of HB 1900 requiring insurance companies to cover treatments for autism such as occupational and speech therapy, aba therapy, and psychiatric and psychological services. HB1900 was initially squashed by the General Assembly in Illinois.

U.S. Researchers, monitoring children's brains, observed that when these children were shown animated examples of something painful happening to a character, brain activity in the regions of the brain known to house empathy were active. The brain circuits that were involved were the same ones that are utilized when a person experiences pain first hand.

A recent outbreak of measles is being reported to have occured in 15 states. More than 120 cases have been reported making it the biggest measles outbreak in 10 years. The CDC has issued a statement that the outbreak has been traced back to travelers who became sick overseas and returned to the United States, infecting others.

A new educational campus opened up in the Chicago area of Newcastle on Tuesday. After 5 years of determined work with a local real estate adviser interested in helping the non profit community, the Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research at 1939 W. 13th Street opened it's doors to it's 44,000 square foot facility capable of service up to 250 students with autism.

There are many, including myself, that look back at the development of their child, potentially as far back as birth and recall quirks or idiosyncrasies that ocurred during development. University of Florida researchers are studying the movements of babies to document their gross and fine motor skills, and to watch them interact. This will help lead to additional early warning signs.

Chelation treatment, long viewed by many in the medical and scientific community as a sketchy way of treating autism may soon have federal interest and backing. Government researchers are pushing to test the unproven treatment of chelation on autistic children after receiving pressure from desperate parents.

We all know the difficulties we endure with caring for our children with autism, looking for therapy that suits them, and then shuttling them to and from all the endless therapy appointments.

Now imagine doing that in a war zone.