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Eye Gaze in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of Neural Evidence for the Eye Avoidance Hypothesis

Reduced eye contact early in life may play a role in the developmental pathways that culminate in a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. However, there are contradictory theories regarding the neural mechanisms involved. According to the amygdala theory of autism, reduced eye contact results from a hypoactive amygdala that fails to flag eyes as salient. However, the eye avoidance hypothesis proposes the opposite-that amygdala hyperactivity causes eye avoidance. This review evaluated studies that measured the relationship between eye gaze and activity in the 'social brain' when viewing facial stimuli.

Genetic counseling as preventive intervention: toward individual specification of transgenerational autism risk

Although autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are among the most heritable of all neuropsychiatric syndromes, most affected children are born to unaffected parents. Recently, we reported an average increase of 3-5% over general population risk of ASD among offspring of adults who have first-degree relatives with ASD in a large epidemiologic family sample.

Delayed cortical processing of auditory stimuli in children with autism spectrum disorder: A meta-analysis of electrophysiological studies

Several researchers have hypothesised that individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) show encoding delays in their obligatory event-related potentials (ERPs)/ event-related fields (ERFs) for low-level auditory information compared to neurotypical (NT) samples. However, empirical research has yielded varied findings, such as low-level auditory processing in ASD samples being unimpaired, superior, or impaired compared to NT samples. Diverse outcomes have also been reported for studies investigating ASD-NT differences in functional lateralisation of delays.

Feasibility and acceptability of the multi-component P3-MumBubVax antenatal intervention to promote maternal and childhood vaccination: A pilot study

The P3-MumBubVax intervention is feasible and acceptable in the Australian public antenatal setting

Effectiveness of rotavirus vaccines in an Australian population: A case-control study

RV1 and RV5 were both effective in preventing laboratory confirmed and notified rotavirus infections among children aged <5 years

Sleep problems and anxiety from 2 to 8 years and the influence of autistic traits: a longitudinal study

Anxiety and sleep problems may be an early indicator of autism in young children and early autistic traits may also contribute to anxiety problems later in childhood

Impact of influenza on hospitalization rates in children with a range of chronic lung diseases

This large population-based study suggests a significant healthcare burden associated with influenza in children with a range of chronic lung diseases

Baseline incidence of adverse birth outcomes and infant influenza and pertussis hospitalisations prior to the introduction of influenza and pertussis vaccination

These baseline data are essential to assess the safety and effectiveness of influenza and pertussis vaccinations in pregnant women from the NT

Midwives’ attitudes, beliefs and concerns about childhood vaccination: A review of the global literature

The majority of midwives supported vaccination, although a spectrum of beliefs and concerns emerged

No relationship between autistic traits and salivary testosterone concentrations in men from the general population

The current data add to the increasing evidence for the lack of relationship between autistic traits and postnatal levels of testosterone in men