Research summaries for autism therapy: immune system

definition of immune system: System in the body that normally fights infections and other diseases such as cancer.
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Corticosteroid Treatment of Behaviour, Language and Motor Regression in Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Summarized Dec 14, 2009

An immune system suppressant (corticosteroid) may help some children on the autism spectrum.

Two 4-year-old children had a rapid onset of childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD). They had a change in personality, loss of speech, and withdrew from people. They also had seizures. The authors treated them with the corticosteroid prednisolone, and their symptoms gradually disappeared over the next 4 years. Prednisolone acts to reduce inflammation and calm down the immune system, and may have other effects. The doctors found no sign of inflammation in their nervous system. The doctors do not know why the medication worked for these children.

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Autism: An Emerging ‘Neuroimmune Disorder’ in Search of Therapy, Summarized Dec 4, 2009

Scientists are learning that the immune system may contribute to autism symptoms, and may be a good target for autism therapies.

The immune system is the system in the body that fights infections. Scientific evidence is building that tells us that the immune system might contribute to some autism symptoms. Studies show that people with autism have signs of inflammation (turned-up immune system), including inflammation in the brain. Some people with autism had antibodies (immune-active proteins) against brain proteins. If the immune system is important, new drug therapies to help balance the immune system might be helpful.

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Food Allergy and Autism Spectrum Disorders: Is There a Link?, Summarized Sep 15, 2009

Probiotics may help to relieve gut problems in children with autism.

This review article describes proposed causes of gut problems in children with autism and describes the risks and benefits of treatments. There are a lot of data to support that children with autism have a chronic immune response in their gut. Many parents treat the gut problems with the gluten-free, casein-free (GFCF) diet even though there is not a lot of data to support the use of the diet. While there is some concern that the GFCF diet may not provide all needed vitamins to children, this concern is not backed by data. Treatment with probiotics makes sense, but it has not been proven to work in scientific studies of children with autism.

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A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial of Oral Human Immunoglobulin for Gastrointestinal Dysfunction in Children with Autistic Disorder, Summarized Jul 14, 2009

Oral immune therapy does not seem to improve digestive problems in children with autism. People with autism may have digestive problems like diarrhea or constipation. One theory is that digestive trouble is due to inflammation (overactive immune system) in the gut. The authors tested whether oral immunoglobulin treatment might calm down the immune system in the gut and improve symptoms of autism.... Read more...

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Synonyms for immune system include: immune
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