Validation of the Chinese Version of the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

BACKGROUND: The Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) is an essential semi-structured diagnostic tool for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study aims to validate the Chinese version of the ADI-R in Taiwan. METHODS: The Chinese version of the ADI-R was translated and back-translated by professional translators and was approved by the original authors. A group of child psychiatrists and psychologists corrected medical terminology for the final version. Then, a total of 74 participants with ASD (male, 59, 79.73%) and 33 control participants without ASD (male, 16, 48.48%) were recruited. All participants were between 3 years 4 months to 41 years old (mean: 14.63 ± 7.93 years). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to measure the factor structure. RESULTS: Cronbach's α showed good to excellent internal consistency (0.78-0.98) over the three core symptom domains of the Chinese version of the ADI-R. Pearson's correlation analysis revealed very high test-retest reliability (Pearson's correlation coefficients ranging from 0.95 to 0.99). EFA supported three categories of factors. For correct diagnosis of ASD, the Chinese version of the ADI-R had high sensitivity (97.30%), specificity (100%), positive predictive value (PPV) (100%), and negative predictive value (NPV) (94.29%). All domains also showed excellent area under the curves (0.991-1), sensitivity (94.59-98.65%), specificity (96.97-100%), Youden index (94.59-98.65%), PPV (97.78-100%), NPV (89.19-100%), positive likelihood ratio (32.55-33.00%) and negative likelihood ratio (0.00-0.05) after statistical examination. CONCLUSION: The Chinese version of the ADI-R is a reliable and valid diagnostic tool for the diagnosis of ASD in Clinical settings in Taiwan.

Attentional Bias Assessed With Event-Related Potentials in Long-term Hypnotic Users.

PURPOSE/BACKGROUND: Attentional bias toward drug-related cues is considered to be an indication of neurocognitive processes associated with drug dependence. While this phenomenon has been shown in other addictive substances, whether hypnotic medication would lead to similar processes remains an issue to be investigated. The present study examined attentional bias toward drug-related cues in long-term hypnotic users and the effect of negative affect on this process. METHODS/PROCEDURES: Thirteen long-term hypnotic users participated in this study. They spent 2 nights in the sleep laboratory: a mood-induction night and a neutral night. Attentional bias was measured through the recording of event-related potentials using a cue-reactivity paradigm; subjective craving for hypnotics was assessed using a single-item rating scale, and negative affect was measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule. FINDINGS/RESULTS: The results showed that the amplitudes of P300 and slow positive wave for hypnotic-related and sleep-related photographs were significantly higher than those for neutral photographs in both conditions. Negative mood induction did not significantly increase attentional bias. IMPLICATIONS/CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide preliminary evidence that long-term hypnotic users do have attentional bias for hypnotic-related photos, suggesting the possibility of neurocognitive processes associated with drug dependence. However, the results did not show higher attentional bias under negative mood, suggesting that the use of hypnotics is not reinforced by the desire to eliminate negative affect. Because of the limited sample size and lack of a control group, the results should be considered as preliminary findings that call for future studies to further investigate this issue.

Effects of Lactobacillus plantarum PS128 on Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Taiwan: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.

This four-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study investigated the effects of Lactobacillus plantarum PS128 (PS128) on boys with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) aged 7-15 in Taiwan. All subjects fulfilled the criteria for ASD diagnosis of DSM-V and the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R). Questionnaires used for the primary outcome measure include the Autism Behavior Checklist-Taiwan version (ABC-T), the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). The Swanson, Nolan, and Pelham-IV-Taiwan version (SNAP-IV) and the Clinical Global Impression-improvement (CGI-I) were used for the secondary outcome measure. The results showed that PS128 ameliorated opposition/defiance behaviors, and that the total score of SNAP-IV for younger children (aged 712) improved significantly compared with the placebo group. Additionally, several elements were also notably improved in the PS128 group after 28-day consumption of PS128. Further studies are needed to better clarify the effects of PS128 for younger children with ASD on broader symptoms.