One of the world’s experts on the treatment of autism is set to talk to UK politicians to highlight the struggle parents face to get medical support for their children to deal with health issues.
Professor Martha Herbert (pictured), of the US-based Harvard Medical School, will outline the latest in autism research and treatments at the House of Commons in Committee Room 7 on 17 June, from 10-12 noon.
Professor Herbert, author of The Autism Revolution: Whole-Body Strategies for Making Life All it Can Be, will urge MPs to pay close attention to the scale and socio-economic costs of the autism challenge in the UK, where the estimated annual cost of autism is reported to be £30 billion.
The event is being organized by the UK-based Treating Autism charity, which will use the Commons meeting to launch a publication it has prepared in conjunction with the Autism Treatment Trust, Medical Comorbidities in Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Primer for Health Care Professionals and Policy Makers. To see the publication, click here.
Treating Autism wants MPs to take on board the growing consensus among clinicians that by treating the underlying health issues of people with autism, society can improve adaptive functioning and reduce the level of support people with the condition require.
Professor Herbert is also to talk at a conference on the treatment of autism to be held at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh on 12 and 13 June. This event is also organized by Treating Autism and the Autism Treatment Trust and will present an update on the current scientific understanding of autism and intervention options.
The Edinburgh conference will include presentations by Professor Herbert; Dr Mady Hornig of Columbia University; Dr Alex Richardson of Oxford University; Dr Nicola Antonucci of the Biomedical Centre for Autism Research and Treatment in Bari, Italy; and Dr Dario Siniscalco of the Second University of Naples, who will present the latest work with GcMAF and stem cells.
The programme also involves Professor Mike Snape of Autism Therapeutics. He has worked on the development of an anti-inflammatory compound, NNZ-2566, which is reported to show promising clinical applications in the treatment of Rett syndrome and autism.
For more information on the Edinburgh event, click here.
Published: 21 May 2013
