Autistic Daily

Lee Natigal on Flickr

A new treatment for autism involving a drug that is used to chemically castrate sex offenders is causing an uproar among medical professionals and autism researchers.

The Lupron Protocol, developed by Dr. Mark Geier and his son, David Geier, is being touted as the next miracle autism treatment and being marketed as such.

But experts argue there is no scientific evidence for Lupron being effective and warn against the risks to children that could occur, including interfering with natural puberty, risks to the heart and bone, not to mention painful intramuscular shots every other week.

In addition, neither of the Lupron developers is board-certified in any specialty relevant to autism and the use of Lupron, including pediatrics, endocrinology, psychiatry and neurology, notes the Chicago Tribune.

“The idea of using it with vulnerable children with autism, who do not have a life-threatening disease and pose no danger to anyone, without a careful trial to determine the unwanted side effects or indeed any benefits, fills me with horror,” said researcher Simon Baron-Cohen.

Some parents have given the treatment praise, saying they saw notable improvements in their child.

via chicagotribune.com

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Dan Bury Public Library on Flickr

We touched briefly on the struggles Latino families with autism often have.

In Kennewick, Washington, a Hispanic Support Group is helping those families to cope with both resources and support.

Yadira Galvan, the group’s president, felt alienated when she first arrived to the city with her three children that have some form of autism, even though she fluently speaks English, citing cultural barriers as one of the primary reasons.

“The cultural barrier is incredible,” said Terry Buck, a case manager for the Division of Developmental Disabilities in the Tri-Cities.

“It’s been our experience that Hispanic families like to do more things in a group setting rather than one on one,” said Paul Reynolds, regional administrator of DDD, based out of Yakima.

“I think it makes them more comfortable and they get the feeling they’re not alone.”

Despite being one of the few latinas involved with autism advocacy, Galvin got heavily involved, becoming the Hispanic outreach coordinator for the Autism Society of Washington’s Tri-City chapter and joining an advisory board for the Combating Autism Advisory Council.

via thenewtribune.com

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