Matthew Allen's 10 brothers and sisters have grown up helping their parents take care of him.
In honor of Austim Awareness Month, Matt Allen's brothers and sisters share how he has affected their family.
A father documents what he says is "bullying" against his 10-year-old son by the boy's teachers. CNN's Mary Snow reports.
Watching a child take his first steps is one of the biggest milestones for a parent.
Loved ones talk about children and siblings with autism and the impact on their families.
Sanjay interviews Dr. Gary Goldstein on why the percentage of children with autism is increasing.
CNN's Gena Somra travels to a Connecticut rose farm with a special training program for people with autism.
Tom Pinchbeck never dreamed he'd turn his family rose farm into an employment center for people with autism.
Editor's note: In 1994, the American Psychiatric Association published the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-IV. The DSM is the standard classification of mental disorders used by mental health professionals in the United States.
Critics everywhere have hailed "Bully" as an important, engaging documentary.
Autism (now better known as autism spectrum disorder or ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused, at least in part, by genetic factors.
April 2 is the fifth annual World Autism Awareness Day. Since 2007, the day has aimed to raise awareness for individuals and families with members on the autism spectrum. In honor of the day, CNN iReporters shared their stories of what life is like with autism.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports on the rising percentage of kids with autism and examines possible causes like exposure to toxins.
Joseph Sheppard has an IQ above 130. Ask him about his life or worldview and he'll start drawing connections to cosmology and quantum mechanics. He'll toss around names of great intellectuals -- Nietzsche, Spinoza -- as if they're as culturally relevant as Justin Bieber.
Raising an autistic child can take a tremendous financial toll, even when insurance helps cover some of the costs.
Chris Pavlak stands behind the coffee bar at a car dealership in Roswell, Georgia, ready to whip up specialty lattes for waiting customers. As a 21-year-old college sophomore, working as a barista at Café Blends is his first job.
This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released its newest study on the rate of autism among 8-year-olds, showing that 1 in 88 has some form of the disorder. Previously, it was 1 in 110. Does the new figure indicate that we are seeing an epidemic of autism, as some have speculated?
The CDC reports the numbers of U.S. kids with autism is rising. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports.
The number of children with autism in the United States continues to rise, according to a new report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The latest data estimate that 1 in 88 American children has some form of autism spectrum disorder. That's a 78% increase compared to a decade ago, according to the report.
"Will my child still qualify for a diagnosis of autism?" This is the question on the minds of many parents with children who have autism. The short answer is: Most likely, yes.
A mother says her 9-year-old son was put inside a ball bag as punishment at school. She speaks to CNN's Isha Sesay.
A Kentucky woman says special education teachers put her autistic 9-year-old son inside a net ball bag as punishment at his school.
Babies who are unusually small at birth have a higher-than-average risk of developing an autism spectrum disorder later in life, a new study in the journal Pediatrics suggests.
Twelve-year-old Peter Mance knows every street before he sets foot in a city.
The legendary Chaka Khan, dressed in a regal purple and blue blouse and slacks, glides into the CNN Red Chair Interview room. She's wearing stunning, large, hoop earrings crafted by her mother.
Singer Chaka Khan reveals her former career goal, her past as a Black Panther and her one tearful wish.
I'm a 14-year-old boy and I was told that I have Asperger's syndrome. The doctors told us that I have the IQ of a borderline genius. On average what are the chances of that happening?
A new study suggests environmental factors may play a larger role in triggering autism than was previously thought.
Children whose mothers take Zoloft, Prozac, or similar antidepressants during pregnancy are twice as likely as other children to have a diagnosis of autism or a related disorder, according to a small new study, the first to examine the relationship between antidepressants and autism risk.
A report from Canadian researchers published Monday says there is not enough sound evidence to support routine screening of children for autism, but several autism experts are questioning the paper's conclusions.
The proportion of children and teens in the U.S. who have a developmental disability such as autism has increased 17% since the late 1990s, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Students with ADHD can benefits from a coach as Ninette Sosa explains in the Health Minute.
Researchers believe the number of children who have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is much higher than previously believed, according to a new study published Monday in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
A quick and simple questionnaire given to parents during a regular checkup in a pediatrician's office may help detect autism in children as young as 1 year old, a new study suggests.
The attorney for the Massachusetts mother found guilty of attempted murder for withholding medications from her cancer-stricken son said Tuesday the system failed his client.
Whether it's to a swimming pool or a doughnut store, Michael Browne knows where he wants to go -- and since he doesn't have the words to say so, he'll just dart off.
Andrew Wakefield answers charges that his study linking autism to vaccines is fraudulent.
Finally, after 13 years of needless controversy, the British Medical Journal determined that Andrew Wakefield's vaccine-autism link constituted an "elaborate fraud."
The author of a now-retracted study linking autism to childhood vaccines expected a related medical test to rack up sales of up to $43 million a year, a British medical journal reported Tuesday.
The controversy over the existence of a link between autism and vaccines is not likely to end, even after the only study to imply such a link has been discredited, retracted and called an "elaborate fraud."
Journalist Brian Deer says Andrew Wakefield's autism study was a fraud and that he should face criminal charges.
The controversy surrounding a retracted study that linked autism to childhood vaccines has been fueled by the fact that no one knows what really causes autism.
The father of two autistic children responds to the fraudulent autism study claims.
A now-retracted British study that linked autism to childhood vaccines is an "elaborate fraud," according to a medical journal -- a charge the physician behind the study vigorously denies.
Report: A now-retracted study linking autism to childhood vaccines was an "elaborate fraud" creating lasting damage.
A now-retracted British study that linked autism to childhood vaccines was an "elaborate fraud" that has done long-lasting damage to public health, a leading medical publication reported Wednesday.
Before Wendy Radcliff agreed to marry Scott Finn, she made it clear they would have to live in her home state of West Virginia.
On playgrounds and at playdates, it's hard to have a conversation about childhood immunizations without the word autism popping up. In fact, a recent study published in the journal Pediatrics showed that one in four parents is concerned that vaccines can cause autism.
In March, CNN's Don Lemon spoke with Dr. Robert Geller about a court ruling that said vaccines aren't linked to autism.
Police have added a second charge of capital murder against an Irving, Texas, woman who allegedly told a 911 operator that she strangled her two young children because they were autistic, a spokeswoman for the district attorney said Friday.
Police say Saiqa Akhter, mother of two, called 911 to tell them she killed both her children. WFAA reports.
An Irving, Texas, woman told a 911 operator that she strangled her two young children Monday because they were autistic, according to a recording of the call.
Aditi Shankardass explains how an EEG device revealed mistaken diagnoses in children who have developmental disorders.
Far too often, children with developmental disorders are diagnosed solely on the basis of their observable behavior, slotted into broad diagnostic pigeonholes and provided generalized treatments that may not always meet their specific needs.
On a beautiful morning in my hometown of Walnut Creek, California, I sat watching my daughter playing in the park. There she was, along with many other kids, swinging, sliding, and running with the kind of pure joy you see only in children.
Whooping cough, declared an epidemic in California last week, may look like just a cold or a persistent cough in adults. But in infants, it can be fatal, making adult vaccination essential, doctors say.
Whooping cough claims the lives of five babies and sickens hundreds in California. CNN's Elizabeth Cohen reports.
In a scene from NBC's "Parenthood," two parents are attempting to get their 8-year-old son ready for school. The child insists on wearing a pirate costume to class, again. His father asks him to take it off so he won't get teased. His mother says it's OK, mainly so she can get him out the door on time.
The Lancet is retracting a study that linked vaccines and autism. Elizabeth Cohen reports.
The doctor who sparked fears that a childhood vaccine was linked to autism has been barred from practicing medicine after his study was discredited, Britain's General Medical Council announced Monday.
Emerson Donnell III had heard that 80 percent of marriages that include a child with autism end in divorce. And he felt certain it would happen to him.
The late Dr. Sydney Greenspan was a leader in clinical work with children with autism and developmental problems.
Jim Carrey gave no hint of what led to his breakup with Jenny McCarthy in his short announcement via Twitter on Tuesday, but he punctuated it with his trademark smiling emoticon.
In an amicable breakup, McCarthy says she'll "always keep Jim as a leading man in my heart"
It was the dog trainer's honesty that won Lisa McMillan over.
A family finds comfort and security with a service dog that helps two children with autism.
Figuring out what's cool. Struggling for acceptance. Dealing with homework. These are familiar perils of middle school. But Haley Moss did it all while dealing with a hidden challenge: autism.
Temple Grandin, an autistic professor, speaks with CNN after her recent TED talk. She says being autistic is a blessing.
Like many parents, Shannon Kinninger spends a lot of time chauffeuring her children around town.
A federal court ruled Friday that the evidence supporting an alleged causal link between autism and a mercury-containing preservative in vaccines is unpersuasive, and that the families of children diagnosed with autism are not entitled to compensation.
A Vanderbilt study looks at a new, but unproved, occupational therapy that helps some autistic children learn to speak.
When Ryan Wallace got a diagnosis of autism at age 2, his parents never thought they'd hear him speak.
For Mary Calhoun Brown, the term "Asperger's" is crucial to conveying to schools that although her 15-year-old son has had social difficulties, he has a near-genius IQ and great speaking ability.
People with Asperger's syndrome would be included in the same diagnostic group as people with autism and pervasive developmental disorders, according to new guidelines under consideration by the American Psychiatric Association.
A new study finds the risk of having a child with autism increases with a mother's age.
A 10-year study examining 4.9 million births in the 1990s has found more evidence that there's a link between autism and the mother's age at conception.
The retraction of a controversial study that suggested a link between autism and a childhood vaccine has been little comfort to Joe Dimino.
The medical journal The Lancet on Tuesday retracted a controversial 1998 paper that linked the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to autism.
You might not know it to read the news of the discredited research that had long linked vaccines to autism, but there really is good progress on the autism research front.
Blanche Lincoln The League of Conservation Voters has targeted the senator from Arkansas by placing her name on the "Dirty Dozen" list of candidates it hopes to defeat in mid-term elections. Politico.com reports that the environmentalist advocacy group selected Lincoln, a Democrat up for re-election this year, because she opposed passing comprehensive climate legislation and for supporting Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski's resolution that would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gas emissions. According to Politico, the League raised more than $1.5 million to topple candidates in the last election. The Hill reports that Lincoln is fighting back. "I have built a practical, common-sense record on energy and environmental issues while working closely with Arkansas environmental advocates," Lincoln said in a released statement. "Threats from extremist groups from outside our state tell me I'm doing something right for Arkansas." In 1998, Lincoln
I have a milder form of autism (Asperger's syndrome). Are there certain jobs that I cannot do after I get out of college? What are the jobs that I will not be able to do?
A new report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds that one in 110 children in the United States had autism in 2006.
The CDC releases new numbers showing that there are more kids with autism. CNN's Elizabeth Cohen reports.
Researchers have shown for the first time that if a child is diagnosed with autism as early as 18 months of age, offering the toddler age-appropriate, effective therapy can lead to raised IQ levels and improved language skills and behavior.
An autistic child who lost everything in a wildfire finally goes home. CNN's Kara Finnstrom reports.
One year ago Jonathan Reyes wrote a letter to give his parents on Thanksgiving, telling them "I'm thankful for my house which is blue and keeps me safe."
The lawyer for hacker Gary McKinnon, who has admitted breaking into computers at NASA and the Pentagon, said Friday she would continue to fight his extradition to the United States after a top British politician said he would not intervene.
A 13-year-old boy who has Asperger's syndrome survived 11 days on the New York City subway. CNN's Mary Snow reports.
Schizophrenia drugs, increasingly prescribed to children with bipolar disorder and other conditions, can cause youngsters to experience rapid weight gain, according to a new study.
Alisa Rock, whose 10-year-old son Connor has autism, says parents of autistic children often align themselves with one of two camps: There are those who believe that genes cause the disorder, and those firmly convinced that environmental factors are to blame.
The CDC is now reporting one in 91 children is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Alina Cho reports.
A study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics indicates about 1 percent of children ages 3 to 17 have autism or a related disorder, an increase over previous estimates.
The son of a Florida couple known for adopting special-needs children was in his parents' room when they were slain in a home invasion last month, according to documents released by prosecutors.
The Briton accused of hacking into U.S. government computers on Friday lost his court appeal to have his case heard in Britain, his legal team said.
British man Gary McKinnon appeared in court Tuesday to try to prevent his extradition to the United States, where he is wanted for allegedly hacking into U.S. government computers at the Pentagon and NASA.
Graduation day at a New York City school for autistic children is a coming-of-age moment years in the making.
All parents have hopes and dreams for their children. Parents of kids with serious disabilities are no different. But in their moments of wildest imagination, the parents of Vicki Martinez, Chase Ferguson and Travis Cardona could not have envisioned high school graduation -- certainly not in the dark days when they first learned their children had autism.
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