Autism Therapy: chelation

definition of chelation: Medical treatment for binding up and removal of metals in the body. Chelation may be used when a person has been poisoned by metals such as lead. Chelation has also been used to treat children with autism. The human body naturally requires many metals such as zinc and calcium for normal functions. Chelation may remove these important metals as well as dangerous metals such as lead and mercury. Therefore medical supervision is recommended during chelation therapy. Side effects (including death) have been reported during chelation therapy.

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Safety and Efficacy of Oral DMSA Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Part B – Behavioral Results
BMC Clinical Pharmacology, by Adams, JB, Baral M., Geis E., Mitchell J., Ingram J., Hensley A., Zappia I., and Newmark S., published in 2009, summarized Apr 27, 2010

A single round of DMSA chelation therapy may improve the severity of autism.

The purpose of this study was to see if DMSA therapy is safe and helpful for children with autism. The authors used five tools to assess changes in autism symptoms. Three of the tools (PDD-BI, SAS and PGI) showed improved behaviors in the children who were given one round of DMSA therapy, and those who were given seven rounds of DMSA therapy. The authors believe that one round of treatment may be enough for some children to excrete toxic metals. The children who released the most metals (thallium, arsenic, mercury, and lead) were the ones with the most improved autism symptoms.


Complementary Alternative Medicine for Children with Autism: A Physician Survey
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, by Golnik, AE, and Ireland M., published in 2009, summarized Jan 8, 2010

Some physicians may recommend complementary alternative medicine (CAM) therapies for children with autism.

A survey was offered to 3,100 pediatricians and family medicine practitioners, and about 1 out of 5 responded to the survey (539 physicians). The survey showed that 49% of the doctors encouraged multi-vitamin therapy for children with autism. And 19 to 25% of them encouraged essential fatty acids (EFAs), melatonin, and probiotics as therapy for autism. Physicians discouraged parents from using some therapies. Therapies that were discouraged include chelation (61%), anti-infection treatments (57%), and secretin (43%). Many of the doctors (76%) also urged immunizations according to the recommended schedule. The authors said that doctors may want to ask families about therapies that families might be using, even if the parents do not bring up the topic.


Autism
British Medical Journal Clinical Evidence, by Parr, J., published in 2007, summarized Sep 11, 2009

There are many therapy options for people with autism, and some of them are supported by scientific evidence indicating that they may be likely to help.

This review article summarizes published scientific studies of how well different autism therapies might work. The article lists 29 therapy options in four categories. There are "early multidisciplinary interventions" that include applied behavioral analysis (ABA) and social stories. The other categories are dietary interventions, drug therapy, and non-drug treatments like auditory integration training and chelation therapy. The therapies listed as "likely to be beneficial"include: ABA, Autism Pre-school Programme, Child's Talk, More than Words, Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), and methylphenidate for hyperactivity. Other therapies are listed as "unknown effectiveness" or "trade off between benefits and harms."


Treating Autism Appropriately
British Journal of General Practice, by Fitzpatrick, M., published in 2009, summarized Aug 3, 2009

Scientific studies may be a useful tool in guiding parents to choose autism therapies that are likely to help the child and not hurt the child.

In this essay, the author described a day spent at a biomedical conference in England. The conference offered information about autism therapy. The author was upset because the therapies discussed at the conference had not been proven to work by scientific research studies. He also noted that there were no medical doctors practicing in the British National Health Service who gave talks at the conference. The author felt the atmosphere of the conference did not leave room for input from established doctors. The author said that, ideally, parents would choose therapies that have been shown scientifically to have a strong chance of helping the child and had few side effects or risks. In contrast to this, some children may be asked to go through testing and therapies that are hard on the child and have a low chance of success. Or worse, the children may be at risk for health problems from therapies that he believes are more risky, such as chelation therapy. The author also urged doctors to be cautious about prescribing therapy options that are not based on sound scientific research.


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National Institute of Mental Health Decides to Cancel Study on Chelation

Sep 23, 2008

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) had planned a study on the effects of chelation therapy on children with autism. Chelation therapy purports to pull toxic metals such as mercury from children. While some parents claim to have found chelation therapy helpful in reducing symptoms of autism, the NIMH found that there was no strong medical science to back up the parent claims. The NIMH was also concerned that the drug used for chelation (DMSA) was too risky for use with children. The NIMH therefore cancelled the chelation study.

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The Many Options for Autism Treatment

Jul 2, 2008

Physicians and parents of children with autism advise parents of the newly diagnosed to explore any and all treatment options. They explain that different combinations of interventions work differently for each child with autism spectrum disorder. Therapies to try include: applied behavior analysis (ABA); TEACHH; pivotal response training; Floortime, drug therapy, nutritional supplements, and chelation therapy.

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Mother Gives Every Therapy a Chance in Fight Against Autism

Feb 12, 2008

Jennifer Blaton of Shreveport, LA, like a lot of parents, will stop at nothing to help her daughter with autism. At the foundation of her daughter's treatment is a gluten- and casein-free diet; this appears to have made the biggest different in Darbee's integration. In addition, Blaton gives her daughter vitamin supplements including B12 and magnesium sulfate cream. Her daughter receives regular testing for the presence of heavy metals in her body as well as monthly intravenous chelation treatments. While Darbee is non-verbal, she makes straight As in school.

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Autism Treatments Tailored for Each Child

Jan 17, 2008

Defeat Autism Now (DAN) is a model that encompasses alternative therapies for children with autism. Drs. Buckley and Kartzinel of Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, tailor treatment based on a child's individual history. Therapies include: wheat free and dairy free diets, vitamin supplements, and in some cases chelation.

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Please comment on this autism topic.

NeuroSensory Centers of America

Jul 8, 2008 by Anonymous

My son has shown tremendous improvement since starting the protocol at the Neurosensory Center of Eastern Pennsylvania. First they do non-invasive, high tech testing on the sensory systems (eyes, ears, and balance) and using the graphs created by the computer 'prescribe' treatment -- anti-virals, anti-fungals, chelation and supplementation. It's covered by many insurances and it doesn't hurt, so I'm all for it!


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Please comment on chelation or other autism therapy topics.

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    • Synonyms for chelation include: chelation therapy, clathration, clathration supplements
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