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The study aimed to evaluate the experiences of participants involved in co-production to develop a National Framework for assessing children's functional strengths and support needs. The National Framework was developed to guide professionals when working with children aged 0-12 years, including children who do and do not have one or more diagnosed condition(s), and their families in Australia and inform good policy across health, education, disability, and community support sectors.
Preterm birth is associated with a 3.3-fold increased likelihood of autism diagnosis, with lower gestational age conferring higher likelihood. In Australia, autism is typically diagnosed at around age four, potentially missing the optimal neuroplasticity window before age two. The Social Attention and Communication Surveillance-Revised (SACS-R) tool identifies early autism signs in children aged 11-30 months, enabling pre-emptive intervention.
Autism genetics has historically attracted a substantial proportion of autism research funding internationally. However, more recently, several controversies centered on ethical conduct and lack of community consultation have emerged. This has triggered Autistic-led protests for the functional and meaningful inclusion of Autistic voices in the research design.
Pre-reading language skills develop rapidly in early childhood and are related to brain structure and functional architecture in young children prior to formal education. However, the early neurobiological development that supports these skills is not well understood.
This systematic review aimed to identify the most important social, environmental, biological, and/or genetic risk factors for intellectual disability.
Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder may be at higher likelihood of experiencing poorer oral health and difficulties accessing dental health care. However, identifying which children on the autism spectrum may be more vulnerable to experiencing dental care difficulties is still unknown.
Bisphenol A (BPA) is a synthetic chemical used for the manufacturing of plastics, epoxy resin, and many personal care products. This ubiquitous endocrine disruptor is detectable in the urine of over 80% of North Americans.
Principal Research Fellow
Maretta Mann, Research Development Manager
Mirko is a medically trained research-focused academic with a background in developmental psychology, psychometrics, and big data science. His research takes a life-span perspective and is driven by the urgent need to improve outcomes for people on the autism spectrum and with other neurodevelopmental and neuropsy