From Book News, Inc.
Neurologists Bauman (Harvard Medical School) and Kemper (Boston U. School of Medicine) note that despite significant progress in the clinical and neurobiological understanding of autism since the 1994 edition, due in part to parent advocacy, much remains unknown about this multidimensional disorder. Beginning with the epidemiology of such developmental disorders that affect at least 220,000 Americans under age 20, predominantly North American contributors to 27 chapters review the physiologic, behavioral, psychological, information-processing, and nutritional aspects of this diagnosis. They also discuss medications used to treat autism, and its possible genetic and immunologic bases.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR


Book Description
In the decade since the first edition of The Neurobiology of Autism was published, tremendous advances have been made in our understanding of autism, including more precise investigations into the role played by genetics and abnormalities in such neurotransmitters as acetylcholine and serotonin. For this long-anticipated new edition, neurologists Margaret Bauman and Thomas Kemper bring together leading researchers and clinicians to present the most current scientific knowledge and theories about autism. The contributors cover genetics, imaging studies, physiology, neuroanatomy and neurochemistry, immunology, brain function, the epidemiology of the disease, and related disorders. Thoroughly updated, The Neurobiology of Autism remains the best single-volume work on the wide array of research being conducted into the causes, characteristics, and treatment of autism.Contributors: George M. Anderson, Yale Child Study Center; Tara L. Arndt, University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC); Trang Au, University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMC); Jocelyne Bachevalier, University of Texas Health Science Center; Irina N. Bespalova, Seaver Autism Research Center, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine (SARC); Gene J. Blatt, Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM); Susan E. Bryson, IWK Health Centre--Dalhousie University; Timothy M. Buie, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH); Joseph D. Buxbaum, SARC; Kathryn M. Carbone, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (JHUSM); Diane C. Chugani, Wayne State University; Daniel F. Connor, UMMC; Edwin H. Cook, Jr., University of Chicago; S. Hossein Fatemi, University of Minnesota Medical School; Susan E. Folstein, Tufts University School of Medicine; Eric Fombonne, McGill University; Randi Jenssen Hagerman, UC Davis Medical Center; Elizabeth Petri Henske, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia; Jeannette J. A. Holden, Queen's University; Ronald J. Killiany, BUSM; Omanand Koul, UMMC; Mandy Lee, Newcastle General Hospital, U.K.; Xudong Liu, Queen's University; Tara L. Moore, BUSM; Mark B. Moss, BUSM; Karin B. Nelson, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Phillip G. Nelson, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development; Elaine Perry, Newcastle General Hospital; Jonathan Pevsner, JHUSM; Mikhail V. Pletnikov, JHUSM; Stephen W. Porges, University of Illinois at Chicago; Lucio Rehbein, Universidad de la Frontera, Chile; Jennifer Reichert, SARC; Patricia M. Rodier, URMC; Beth Rosen-Sheidley, MGH; Susan L. Smalley, UCLA Neuropsychiatric Research Institute; Ronald J. Steingard, UMMC; Helen Tager-Flusberg, BUSM; Gary L. Wenk, University of Arizona; Andrew W. Zimmerman, JHUSM


About the Author
Margaret L. Bauman, M.D., is an associate clinical professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School. Thomas L. Kemper, M.D., is a professor of neurology, anatomy, and pathology at Boston University School of Medicine.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The behavior of autistic children -- repetitive actions, impaired social functioning, disordered communication -- was once attributed to poor parenting. Although it is now known to be linked to anatomical changes in the brain, autism remains an incompletely understood disorder. Diagnostic markers are elusive, and there is as yet no uniformly effective treatment for autistic children and adults.

In The Neurobiology of Autism Margaret Bauman and Thomas Kemper bring together leading investigators to discuss advances in scientific research that point to a neurobiological basis for autism and to examine the clinical implications of the research. These authors present up-to-date accounts of their own research and provide comprehensive reviews of the work of others. The result is a compilation of information in a single source that will enable clinical investigators to begin to speculate about the seemingly disparate pieces of information already available, consider how they might fit together, and develop new ideas and avenues for further research.

FROM THE CRITICS

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