Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 36 in total

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  1. "There's No Separating My View of My Body from My Autism": A qualitative study of positive body image in autistic individuals
    Longhurst P, Aspell J, Todd J, Swami V
    Body Image, 2024 Mar;48:101655.
    PMID: 38042087 DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2023.101655
    While scholars have investigated positive body image across diverse populations, extant theory largely excludes those with differing socio-cognitive experiences, such as autistic individuals. Using constructivist grounded theory, this study sought to develop a grounded theory of positive body image in autistic individuals. One-to-one interviews with photo-elicitation were conducted with 20 autistic adults (7 women, 8 men, 5 non-binary/agender; aged 18-53 years) from the United Kingdom. Through a process of open, axial, and focused coding, a grounded theory was developed around a core category of positive body image in autistic adults and was found to comprise six themes: body connection, body acceptance, appreciating body functionality and neurodivergent strengths, having a body-positive protective filter, taking care of the body, and body and appearance neutrality. Our findings suggest that some aspects of positive body image in autistic individuals are consistent with those found in neurotypical adults. However, positive body image in autistic individuals further encompasses both the sensory (i.e., how the body is felt) and aesthetic (i.e., how the body is seen) body. These findings may stimulate research aimed at improving positive body image in autistic populations.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder*
  2. Fulltext A Mixed-Methods Evaluation of Parent-Assisted Children's Friendship Training to Improve Social Skills and Friendship Quality in Children with Autism in Malaysia
    Ong SY, Roslan S, Ahmad NA, Ayub AFM, Ping CL, Zaremohzzabieh Z, et al.
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 Mar 04;18(5).
    PMID: 33806563 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18052566
    Background: This study evaluates the effectiveness of parent-assisted children's friendship training intervention for enhancing friendship quality and social skills among children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). We conducted a quasi-experimental study to investigate the effective outcomes of social skills and friendship quality in the pre-and post-parent-assisted CFT intervention phases; Methods: to conduct a 12-week field session, 30 children with their parents were selected. The Social Skills Improvement System Rating Scales and the Quality of Play Questionnaire-Parent were used to assess the effectiveness of the parent-assisted children's friendship training during pre-and post-intervention. A semi-structured interview with parents was conducted at the end of the session; Results: findings revealed that intervention improved the social skills of these children. Additionally, the friendship quality of children with ASD improved before and after the intervention, however, engagement remained unchanged. Parents also showed some sort of improvement after the session as they reported a heightened sense of fear and resistance, awareness, learning and adjustment, change is not easy, and identifying support; Conclusions: there was clear evidence that children with ASD benefitted from parent-assisted CFTs in terms of social skills and friendship quality. However, larger and controlled studies are required to draw firm conclusions about this kind of intervention.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder*
  3. A Review of Machine Learning Methods of Feature Selection and Classification for Autism Spectrum Disorder
    Rahman MM, Usman OL, Muniyandi RC, Sahran S, Mohamed S, Razak RA
    Brain Sci, 2020 Dec 07;10(12).
    PMID: 33297436 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci10120949
    Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), according to DSM-5 in the American Psychiatric Association, is a neurodevelopmental disorder that includes deficits of social communication and social interaction with the presence of restricted and repetitive behaviors. Children with ASD have difficulties in joint attention and social reciprocity, using non-verbal and verbal behavior for communication. Due to these deficits, children with autism are often socially isolated. Researchers have emphasized the importance of early identification and early intervention to improve the level of functioning in language, communication, and well-being of children with autism. However, due to limited local assessment tools to diagnose these children, limited speech-language therapy services in rural areas, etc., these children do not get the rehabilitation they need until they get into compulsory schooling at the age of seven years old. Hence, efficient approaches towards early identification and intervention through speedy diagnostic procedures for ASD are required. In recent years, advanced technologies like machine learning have been used to analyze and investigate ASD to improve diagnostic accuracy, time, and quality without complexity. These machine learning methods include artificial neural networks, support vector machines, a priori algorithms, and decision trees, most of which have been applied to datasets connected with autism to construct predictive models. Meanwhile, the selection of features remains an essential task before developing a predictive model for ASD classification. This review mainly investigates and analyzes up-to-date studies on machine learning methods for feature selection and classification of ASD. We recommend methods to enhance machine learning's speedy execution for processing complex data for conceptualization and implementation in ASD diagnostic research. This study can significantly benefit future research in autism using a machine learning approach for feature selection, classification, and processing imbalanced data.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  4. A cross-cultural comparison of autistic traits in the UK, India and Malaysia
    Freeth M, Sheppard E, Ramachandran R, Milne E
    J Autism Dev Disord, 2013 Nov;43(11):2569-83.
    PMID: 23494561 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-013-1808-9
    The disorder of autism is widely recognised throughout the world. However, the diagnostic criteria and theories of autism are based on research predominantly conducted in Western cultures. Here we compare the expression of autistic traits in a sample of neurotypical individuals from one Western culture (UK) and two Eastern cultures (India and Malaysia), using the Autism-spectrum Quotient (AQ) in order to identify possible cultural differences in the expression of autistic traits. Behaviours associated with autistic traits were reported to a greater extent in the Eastern cultures than the Western culture. Males scored higher than females and science students scored higher than non-science students in each culture. Indian students scored higher than both other groups on the Imagination sub-scale, Malaysian students scored higher than both other groups on the Attention Switching sub-scale. The underlying factor structures of the AQ for each population were derived and discussed.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder/diagnosis*
  5. A descriptive study of the diagnosis and symptomotology of a sample of autistic children in the Klang Valley region of Malaysia
    Low SJX, Pillai SK, Singh Gill J, Sinniah K, Swami V
    Jurnal Psikologi Malaysia, 2008;22:29-38.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  6. A holistic (Horney) approach to the psychoses: the schizophrenias. I. Sociocultural, developmental and psychogenetic factors
    Rubins JL
    Am J Psychoanal, 1969;29(2):131-46.
    PMID: 4900056
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  7. Adenylosuccinate lyase deficiency in a Malaysian patient, with novel adenylosuccinate lyase gene mutations
    Chen BC, McGown IN, Thong MK, Pitt J, Yunus ZM, Khoo TB, et al.
    J Inherit Metab Dis, 2010 Dec;33 Suppl 3:S159-62.
    PMID: 20177786 DOI: 10.1007/s10545-010-9056-z
    Most cases of adenylosuccinate lyase (ADSL OMIM 103050) deficiency reported to date are confined to the various European ethnic groups. We report on the first Malaysian case of ADSL deficiency, which appears also to be the first reported Asian case. The case was diagnosed among a cohort of 450 patients with clinical features of psychomotor retardation, global developmental delay, seizures, microcephaly and/or autistic behaviour. The patient presented with frequent convulsions and severe myoclonic jerk within the first few days of life and severe psychomotor retardation. The high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) profile of the urine revealed the characteristic biochemical markers of succinyladenosine (S-Ado) and succinyl-aminoimidazole carboximide riboside (SAICAr). The urinary S-Ado/SAICAr ratio was found to be 1.02 (type I ADSL deficiency). The patient was compound heterozygous for two novel mutations, c.445C > G (p.R149G) and c.774_778insG (p.A260GfsX24).
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  8. Fulltext Ankrd11 is a chromatin regulator involved in autism that is essential for neural development
    Gallagher D, Voronova A, Zander MA, Cancino GI, Bramall A, Krause MP, et al.
    Dev. Cell, 2015 Jan 12;32(1):31-42.
    PMID: 25556659 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2014.11.031
    Ankrd11 is a potential chromatin regulator implicated in neural development and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with no known function in the brain. Here, we show that knockdown of Ankrd11 in developing murine or human cortical neural precursors caused decreased proliferation, reduced neurogenesis, and aberrant neuronal positioning. Similar cellular phenotypes and aberrant ASD-like behaviors were observed in Yoda mice carrying a point mutation in the Ankrd11 HDAC-binding domain. Consistent with a role for Ankrd11 in histone acetylation, Ankrd11 was associated with chromatin and colocalized with HDAC3, and expression and histone acetylation of Ankrd11 target genes were altered in Yoda neural precursors. Moreover, the Ankrd11 knockdown-mediated decrease in precursor proliferation was rescued by inhibiting histone acetyltransferase activity or expressing HDAC3. Thus, Ankrd11 is a crucial chromatin regulator that controls histone acetylation and gene expression during neural development, thereby providing a likely explanation for its association with cognitive dysfunction and ASD.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder/genetics; Autistic Disorder/metabolism; Autistic Disorder/pathology*
  9. Fulltext Asperger's syndrome: a report of two cases from Malaysia
    Kasmini K, Zasmani S
    Singapore Med J, 1995 Dec;36(6):641-3.
    PMID: 8781638
    Asperger's Syndrome is a distinct variant of autism, with a prevalence rate of 10 to 26 per 10,000 of normal intelligence, and 0.4 per 10,000 in those with mild mental retardation. The syndrome now has its own clinical entity and diagnostic criteria. It is being officially listed in the ICD-10 under pervasive developmental disorder. Two such cases are described in this article. Case One lacked the ability to relate to others, was excessively preoccupied with the late actor P. Ramlee and demonstrated a peculiar behaviour of holding on to toothbrushes in his early childhood. Cognitively, he was unable to synthesise words into meaningful sentences. Similarly, Case Two was unable to relate well to others and was preoccupied with the planets and its constellations. Though he appeared intelligent with an IQ score of 101, he was unable to follow instructions at school. Both children had motor clumsiness and fulfilled the criteria for the diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder/classification; Autistic Disorder/diagnosis*; Autistic Disorder/psychology
  10. Autism and trichotillomania in an adolescent boy
    Masiran R
    BMJ Case Rep, 2018 Sep 05;2018.
    PMID: 30185454 DOI: 10.1136/bcr-2018-226270
    An adolescent with autism spectrum disorder and improperly treated attention deficit hyperactivity disorder presented with recurrent hair pulling. Treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and stimulant improved these conditions.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder/complications; Autistic Disorder/drug therapy*
  11. Fulltext Autism: awareness and perception among Malaysian Nursing Students in Sabah
    Deena Clare Thomas, Julie C M, Helda A H, Nurhani Nadiah B, Ranita M
    Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences, 2020;16(105):71-0.
    MyJurnal
    Introduction: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that can cause significant social, com- munication and behavioral challenges. According to the 2017 survey by the Ministry of Health Malaysia, children between the ages of 18 to 26 months showed ASD occurs approximately 1.6 in1000 children. In Sabah, 400 autistic children had been registered under Sabah Autism Society (SAS). The increasing prevalence of ASD had become a major concern not only to the parents but to the community. A correct understanding and perception about ASD are crucial especially to the nursing profession as they must be able to educate caregiver on how to manage patients with ASD. Methods: This is a quantitative study using a cross-sectional approach. The respondents are all nursing students in Sabah. The type of sampling is purposive, which is using snowball sampling methods. Research instruments were developed and distributed to all nursing colleges in Sabah. Results: A total of 115 students responded. The majority of age is within range of 18–20 years old and female students. Fifty percents (50%) respondents perceived that of autism is a socio-emotional and neuro-developmental disorder with a non-verbal behaviors’ impairment, curable disorder with proper treatment. More than fifty percent (50%) disagree that autistic child does not want friends and equivalent stand on the statement about autistic child can live independently. Ninety five percent (90%) agree that social media plays an important platform to deliver facts about autism, and health care provider remains as a key role to increase the level of awareness to the community. Conclusion: Results of this study revealed that nursing students in Sabah have a good awareness and perception towards autistic disorder. Nursing students in Sabah agree that social media plays a vital part to increase the level of awareness and perception.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  12. Fulltext Behind the Scenes of Parents Nurturing a Child with Autism: A Qualitative Study in Malaysia
    Yaacob WNW, Yaacob LH, Muhamad R, Zulkifli MM
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 08 12;18(16).
    PMID: 34444280 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18168532
    Many parents have experienced difficulties in parenting children with autism. We, therefore, consider a more in-depth understanding that is necessary to explore the challenges facing parents and families to provide a better outcome for both. We interviewed 21 parents of 24 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to qualitatively explore the challenges they experienced through a phenomenological framework. Four main aspects emerged as challenges to the parents: inadequate knowledge, psychological distress and stigma, lack of support, and barriers to services. These four themes reflect a lack of balance between the needs of caregivers and the services and resources or support available in the community to meet those needs. Our study contributes to an understanding of how parents perceive challenges, making it easier to take necessary action to meet their needs and ease their burden of stress. A concerted effort is needed to coordinate services across all disciplines to address these challenges.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder*
  13. Fulltext Challenges and future perspectives for 3D cerebral organoids as amodel for complex brain disorders
    Cheah, Pike-See, Mason, John O., Ling, King-Hwa
    Neuroscience Research Notes, 2019;2(1):1-6.
    MyJurnal
    The human brain is made up of billions of neurons and glial cells which are interconnected and organized into specific patternsof neural circuitry, and hence is arguably the most sophisticated organ in human, both structurally and functionally.Studying the underlying mechanisms responsible for neurologicalor neurodegenerativedisorders and the developmental basis of complex brain diseases such as autism, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease has proven challenging due to practical and ethical limitations on experiments with human material and the limitationsof existing biological/animal models. Recently,cerebral organoids havebeen proposed as apromisingand revolutionary model for understanding complex brain disorders and preclinical drug screening.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  14. Clinical Practice Guideline: Management of autism spectrum disorder in children and adolescents
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  15. Fulltext Clinical diagnosis and non-verbal ability of primary-one school children with LD
    Toh, Teck Hock, Wong, See Chang, Muhamad Rais Abdullah
    Int J Public Health Res, 2011;1(2):33-40.
    MyJurnal
    Introduction More school children were referred for learning difficutly (LD), especially after the introduction of LINUS sccreening programme by Ministry of Education Malaysia.
    Aims To study the clinical diagnosis and non-verbal ability of primary-one school children with LD after paediatric assessment, as well as associated behavioural issues and socio-economincal background.
    Methods Assessment findings by Paediatricians and Naglieri Non-Verbal Ability Test®(NNAT®) results of all primary-one school children referred in year 2010 with LD were studied retrospectively.
    Results Ninety-three children were included (62.4% male), and 72.0% of them failed the LINUS screening programme. The commonest diagnoses were Borderline Intellectual Disability (ID, 37.6%) and Mild ID (19.4%). Other diagnoses included Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD, 11.8%), Specific Learning Disability (SLD, 10.8%), Autistic Spectrum Disorder (n = 5) and Severe Language Disorder (n = 3). Mean NNAT scores were 84.6 ± 11.8 (n = 85), of which 9.4% children scored less than 70 (
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  16. Collinear facilitation and contour integration in autistic adults: Examining lateral and feedback connectivity
    Gowen E, Jachim S, Subri S, Dickinson C, Hamblin-Pyke B, Warren PA
    Vision Res, 2020 12;177:56-67.
    PMID: 32977182 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2020.08.004
    Alongside difficulties with communication and social interaction, autism is often accompanied by unusual sensory and perceptual experiences including enhanced visual performance on tasks that involve separating local parts from global context. This superiority may be the result of atypical integrative processing, involving feedback and lateral connections between visual neurons. The current study investigated the integrity of these connections in autistic adults by examining two psychophysics tasks that rely on these processes - collinear facilitation and contour integration. The relative contribution of feedback and lateral connectivity was studied by altering the timing of the target relative to the flankers in the collinear facilitation task, in 16 autistic and 16 non-autistic adults. There were no significant differences in facilitation between the autistic and non-autistic groups, indicating that for this task and participant sample, lateral and feedback connectivity appear relatively intact in autistic individuals. Contour integration was examined in a different group of 20 autistic and 18 non-autistic individuals, for open and closed contours to assess the closure effect (improved detection of closed compared to open contours). Autistic individuals showed a reduced closure effect at both short (150 ms) and longer (500 ms) stimulus presentation durations that was driven by better performance of the autistic group for the open contours. These results suggest that reduced closure in a simple contour detection paradigm is unlikely to be due to slower global processing. Reduced closure has implications for understanding sensory overload by contributing to reduced figure-ground segregation of salient visual features.
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder*
  17. Fulltext Comparative study on attitudes and psychological problems of mothers towards their children with developmental disability
    Shobana M, Saravanan C
    East Asian Arch Psychiatry, 2014 Mar;24(1):16-22.
    PMID: 24676483
    Objective: Parents’ positive attitudes and psychological wellbeing play an important role in the development of the children with developmental disability. This study aimed to measure the prevalence of psychological problems among mothers of children with autism disorder, intellectual disability, and Down syndrome. The second aim was to assess the differences in mothers’ attitudes and psychological problems among their children with intellectual disability, autism disorder, and Down syndrome. The third aim was to identify whether negative attitude was a predictor of psychological problems in these mothers.
    Methods: In this study, 112 mothers of children having mild and moderate levels of autism disorder, Down syndrome, and intellectual disability were assessed using the Parental Attitude Scale and General Health Questionnaire–28.
    Results: Overall, mothers of children with intellectual disability were found to have the most negative attitude towards their child. Mothers of children with autism disorder exhibited higher scores on somatic symptoms, anxiety, and social dysfunction when compared with their counterparts with Down syndrome and intellectual disability. Negative attitude was a significant predictor of psychological problems.
    Conclusion: Parental attitudes and psychological problems would vary among mothers of children with different types of developmental disability.
    Key words: Autistic disorder; Down syndrome; Intellectual disability; Mothers
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder/psychology
  18. Fulltext Epilepsy and comorbidities: towards unravelling the common underlying mechanisms
    Paudel, Yam Nath, Lisgaras, Christos Panagiotis, Lim, Kheng Seang, Shaikh, Mohd. Farooq
    Neuroscience Research Notes, 2018;1(3):1-4.
    MyJurnal
    Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder characterized by the rapid occurrence of epileptic seizures affecting approximately 70 million people worldwide[1,2]. The quality of life of people with epilepsy (PWE) is challenged by a series of comorbidities that might include neurologic and neuropsychiatric disorders (cognitive decline, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and autism) as well as metabolic, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases[3]. Neurobehavioral and other comorbidities might share a reciprocal and complex relationship with epileptogenesis and ictogenesis thus biomarkers of the former might be useful for the prediction of the latter and vice versa[4].
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
  19. Factors associated with autism severity among Malaysian children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
    Eow SY, Gan WY, Lim PY, Awang H, Mohd Shariff Z
    Res Dev Disabil, 2020 May;100:103632.
    PMID: 32179381 DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103632
    BACKGROUND: Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) of different levels of symptom severity may exhibit a wide range of behaviours and characteristics. There is a limited nutrition-related study on children with ASD of different severity in Malaysia.

    AIMS: This cross-sectional study aims to determine the association between sociodemographic factors, parental factors, and lifestyle factors with autism severity in children with ASD.

    METHODS AND PROCEDURES: A total of 224 children with ASD were included in this study. Their mothers completed a self-administered questionnaire on sociodemographic characteristics, autism severity, parenting style, parental feeding practices, parenting stress, child's sleep habits and eating behaviours.

    OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: As high as 78.1 % of the children with ASD demonstrated a high level of autism severity. Multiple linear regression showed that father's employment status (B = 6.970, 95 % CI = 3.172, 10.768, p 

    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder/physiopathology*
  20. Fulltext Generalized epilepsy with febrile seizure plus (GEFS+) spectrum: Novel de novo mutation of SCN1A detected in a Malaysian patient
    Tan EH, Yusoff AA, Abdullah JM, Razak SA
    J Pediatr Neurosci, 2012 May;7(2):123-5.
    PMID: 23248692 DOI: 10.4103/1817-1745.102575
    In this report, we describe a 15-year-old Malaysian male patient with a de novo SCN1A mutation who experienced prolonged febrile seizures after his first seizure at 6 months of age. This boy had generalized tonic clonic seizure (GTCS) which occurred with and without fever. Sequencing analysis of voltage-gated sodium channel a1-subunit gene, SCN1A, confirmed a homozygous A to G change at nucleotide 5197 (c.5197A > G) in exon 26 resulting in amino acid substitution of asparagines to aspartate at codon 1733 of sodium channel. The mutation identified in this patient is located in the pore-forming loop of SCN1A and this case report suggests missense mutation in pore-forming loop causes generalized epilepsy with febrile seizure plus (GEFS+) with clinically more severe neurologic phenotype including intellectual disabilities (mental retardation and autism features) and neuropsychiatric disease (anxiety disorder).
    Matched MeSH terms: Autistic Disorder
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