Autism

New research suggests "neural confusion" may underlie social avoidance in some forms of autism. In a mouse study, neurons that should value social contact responded similarly to both another mouse and a plastic object, blurring the line between the two...

Diagnosing autism and attention-related conditions often takes months, if not years. But new research shows that analyzing how people move their hands during simple tasks, with the help of artificial intelligence, could offer a faster, objective path to early detection.

Children exposed to high levels of PFAS during early pregnancy may face an increased risk of autistic traits by age four, especially if they also have a higher inherited risk for autism, according to new findings.

Researchers are exploring the gut-brain connection to support children with autism and ADHD. A new clinical trial reports a specific probiotic blend reduced parent ratings of hyperactivity and impulsivity in younger children, suggesting a potential new therapeutic target.

Is creativity really a strength of autism? A new study says not necessarily. When controlling for ADHD and cognitive ability, autistic adults showed no creative edge—suggesting that previously observed differences may stem from ADHD.

Scientists have uncovered how puberty reshapes brain connectivity in 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, a genetic condition linked to autism and schizophrenia. The findings highlight how changes in synapses and brain connections may shape social behavior and mental health outcomes later in...

A recent study found that a therapy designed to develop inner speech led to reduced emotional dysphoria and some improvement in emotional reactivity in autistic children, suggesting it may help support emotional regulation.

Researchers have uncovered evidence that sensory sensitivities linked to autism may instead be genetically tied to alexithymia. This emotional processing trait, often overlooked, could be the true source of sensory challenges across multiple conditions, not just autism.

A new study suggests that whole-body play activities can help autistic children improve self-control and reduce negative behaviors. Researchers found that movement-based interventions were more effective than sedentary play in boosting executive function and decreasing sensory and behavioral issues.

A new randomized controlled trial shows that a humanoid robot can significantly improve social communication and interaction in children with autism. The study found that robot-led therapy was more effective than both human-only intervention and no intervention at all.

Hand movements during a basic grasping task can help identify autism, new research suggests. The study used motion tracking and machine learning to analyze finger movements and found that classification accuracy exceeded 84% using just two sensors.

What do anime faces, brain imaging, and curiosity games have in common? They’re all helping scientists uncover the hidden complexities of autism.

People with higher autistic traits struggled to recognize emotions in human faces, but not in anime faces. However, this difficulty was fully explained by alexithymia.

New research shows that social behaviors often misunderstood by interviewers can overshadow qualifications, leading to unfair hiring decisions.

Calls to revisit the discredited vaccine-autism claim miss the mark, but they raise an important question: how reliable is scientific research if it’s rarely replicated?