Cognitive and Neural Correlates of Aging in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

Purpose: As the first diagnosed ASD individuals are now reaching old age, it is imperative that we understand the impact of aging on individuals with ASD. We developed a model predicting greater executive dysfunction and frontal lobe susceptibility in ASD beyond normal aging. Scope: This study, which is a collaborative study of the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center the Barrow Neurological Institute and Arizona State University, produces comprehensive cognitive, behavioral, and neuroimaging data on a set of well-characterized older ASD individuals who can be used as a reference for clinical diagnosis, therapeutics, and care plans. The scope of the third year was to continue with recruitment and data collection, produce results from cross-sectional analyses of the initial assessment, and begin longitudinal analyses. Results and significance: We published our first in a series of studies from the initial cross-sectional data analysis in a high impact Autism journal (Autism Research), and were a highlighted project on the DoD website. We presented new analyses at the International Meeting for Autism Research in Rotterdam, Netherlands. We have two papers submitted on cross-sectional data, and a third manuscript that will be submitted in the coming month. We have obtained a no-cost extension to finish collecting our second timepoint; we have a 94 percent retention rate thus far. Based on the discoveries we have made from this study, we have planned a personalized, behavioral intervention program; we received approval from the DoD to submit an application on this in October 2018.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 2018
Accession Number
AD1105349

Entities

People

  • Christopher J Smith

Organizations

  • Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Autonomy

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Autism
  • Bayesian Networks
  • Biomedical Research
  • Brain
  • Data Analysis
  • Department Of Defense
  • Diseases And Disorders
  • Executives
  • Health Services
  • Intervention
  • Language
  • Machine Learning
  • Management Personnel
  • Medical Personnel
  • Mental Processes
  • Neuroimaging
  • Psychology

Fields of Study

  • Medicine

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