Background and Aims: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present with impairments in social interaction and stereotypic behaviors. About a third may exhibit delays in verbal expression beyond preschool age, potentially categorizing them as nonverbal/minimally verbal (NV/MV), a condition that can persist into adulthood and affect their…

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder that brings heavy burdens to families and the society. This case-control study explored risk factors for ASD based on 74,252 children aged 3-12 years who were recruited from general education kindergartens, primary schools, and special education schools in Shanghai, China.…

Collecting the perfect data to answer a research question is optimal but not always feasible. Sometimes existing data can be leveraged to answer some questions, but this opportunity comes with important potential pitfalls. To test the effect of early life exposures such as being born preterm or living in a materially deprived neighborhood on early…

Epilepsy is a heterogeneous collection of neurological conditions and syndromes characterized by recurrent, unprovoked, paroxysmal seizure activity. It is estimated that 10.5 million children under 15 years have active epilepsy, representing about 25% of the global epilepsy population. Of the 3.5 million people who develop epilepsy annually, 40%…

Summer slide, uneven growth of academic skills during the calendar year, captures the fact that the learning gains children make during the school year do not continue at the same pace over the summer, when children are typically not in school. We compared growth of reading skills during the school year and during the summer months in children…

We analyzed two nationally representative, longitudinal data sets of U.S. children to identify risk factors for persistent mathematics difficulties (PMD). Results indicated that children from low socioeconomic households are at elevated risk of PMD at 48 and 60 months of age, as are children with cognitive delays, identified developmental delays…

Background: Prenatal stress has been shown to predict persistent behavioural abnormalities in offspring. Unknown is whether prenatal stress makes children more vulnerable to peer victimisation. Methods: The current study is based on the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a prospective community-based study. Family adversity, maternal…

Young, Wright, and Laster (2005) stated that since the "Brown v. Board of Topeka, Kansas" decision, gaps in educational achievement have been a recognized problem across the United States. Particularly, differences in achievement levels for elementary and secondary African American students have remained. Daniels (1998) stated that…