Access to diagnosis and treatment services among latino children with autism spectrum disorders.

There is greater identification of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and, as a result, more attention to specialty services to address the challenges children with ASD face. Along with the growth in identification of ASD is a growth in the population of Latino children, yet there is some evidence that disparities exist in diagnosis and services between Latino and non-Latino White children. This study further documents these disparities and investigates the mechanisms that may contribute to them. Diagnosis and specialty services were compared between 48 Latino and 56 non-Latino White children diagnosed with ASD, and factors that contribute to differences are explored. Results show that Latino children were diagnosed almost one year later than White children, received fewer specialty services, and had higher unmet service needs. Factors that accounted for differences in the number of services received were maternal level of education and the number of sources of knowledge about autism. Findings suggest that service providers need to work to provide greater awareness and knowledge about autism, and make services more accessible to Latino families.

A comparison of polyglycolic acid versus type 1 collagen bioabsorbable nerve conduits in a rat model: an alternative to autografting.

PURPOSE: Severe nerve injury with segmental loss requires nerve graft or conduit repair. We compared 2 synthetic, bioabsorbable nerve conduits with the gold standard of autogenous nerve grafting using histopathologic and neurophysiologic analyses. METHODS: A 10-mm segment of the sciatic nerve of 45 Sprague-Dawley rats was resected, leaving a gap defect. Three experimental groups were used: 15 coaptations using type I collagen nerve conduits, 15 coaptations using polyglycolic acid (PGA) nerve conduits, and 15 coaptations using the excised segments as autogenous nerve grafts. The contralateral legs were used as unoperated controls. After 15 weeks, nerve regeneration was evaluated by measuring isometric muscle contraction force, axonal counting, wet muscle weights, and histology. RESULTS: Statistically significant differences in the isometric muscle contraction force, axonal counts, and wet muscle weights were found between type I collagen conduit and nerve graft compared to the PGA conduit. Axonal sprouting was less organized and less dense with the PGA conduits when compared to nerve reconstruction with the type I collagen conduits and nerve grafts. CONCLUSIONS: Type I collagen conduits and autografts produced comparable results, which were significantly better than PGA conduits. The use of type I collagen conduit is a reliable alternative to nerve grafting for gaps up to 10 mm in length.