In December 2007, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution,
Designate 2 April as World Autism Day
To raise awareness of autism patients and autism-related research and diagnosis.
2 April 2022 marks the 15th World Autism Day.
The theme of this promotion is:
Focus on autism services: build a social security mechanism to promote the high-quality development of service institutions
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), abbreviated as autism, is a developmental disorder caused by neurological disorders, including what we know as typical autism (autism) to Asperger's syndrome, childhood schizophrenia, and non-specific pervasive developmental disorders.
Spectrum disorder is a medical term that refers to everything with similar symptoms. For example, autism spectrum disorder and autism spectrum disorder.
Video : 3 minutes to let you know about autism
Autism manifests as social interaction and communication disorders, with narrow interests and stereotyped repetitive behavior patterns, and may be accompanied by language developmental disorders, intellectual disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorders, epilepsy, etc., with an incidence of about 1%.
Symptoms of autism usually manifest at 12-18 months of age, but the diagnosis takes 24-36 months to be made, and some children are not diagnosed until adulthood.
According to the data statistics of the "Report on the Development of China's Autism Education and Rehabilitation Industry III" published in 2019, there are more than 10 million autistic patients in the mainland, and the number of autistic children aged 0 to 14 exceeds 2 million, and it shows an upward trend, with the ratio of men and women about 5:1.
Autistic people have a poetic name, the children of the stars, described as shining alone in the night sky like distant stars. The course of autism can last a lifetime and is difficult to reverse, causing a huge financial burden on the patient's family and society.
There is currently no specific treatment for autism, mainly through behavioral interventions, special education training, family therapy programs to promote children's language development, improve children's behavior, improve social communication skills, master basic life and learning skills, but the effect is limited.
Modern medical research shows that autism is a diffuse central nervous system developmental disorder caused by a variety of environmental factors under the action of certain genetic factors. Although the causes of autism have not been fully elucidated to date, people with autism present with neurological damage due to altered inflammatory responses and inadequate tissue perfusion.
Stem cells have the function of repairing damaged tissues and organs, as well as inhibiting inflammation and immunomodulatory functions. Clinical trial results have shown that stem cell therapy for autism can improve the behavior of patients, and the safety has been preliminarily confirmed, providing a completely new possibility for the treatment of autism.
According to clinicaltrial.gov records, there are a total of 19 clinical trials of stem cells for autism worldwide, of which 6 are completed.
Case 1: In 2017, CNN reported a clinical trial of cord blood stem cells in Rock ridge, Florida, to alleviate symptoms and behaviors of autism in children.
CNN reports: The story of cord blood stem cells in the treatment of autistic children
Studies have found that stem cells can alleviate the symptoms and behaviors of autism. In this clinical trial by Dr. Kurzberg and his team, 70 percent of children with autism, including those who started treatment at the age of 5, improved.
Case 2: In 2019, the international authoritative journal Stem Cell Translational Medicine published a research paper on the safety of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of autism in children and the impact on cytokine levels.
Case 3: 9 children with autism, including 8 men and 1 woman, with an average age of 10 years old, there are different degrees of biological inability to take care of themselves, and some actions cannot be completed involving eating, dressing, washing and toileting.
After treatment with stem cell transplantation (4 cases of intravenous + intrathecal injection, 5 cases of intravenous + intrathecal injection + intraventricular injection), each child was treated an average of 3 times, supplemented by routine rehabilitation treatment, in addition to a few very delicate movements (needle threading, glass balls), the patient's daily living ability and comprehension ability have been significantly improved, and simple housework and personal care can be completed under the guidance of parents.
In recent years, studies have found that inflammatory immunity has an inhibitory effect on neurogenesis in the brain, especially in the hippocampus. Stem cells, on the other hand, can counteract this inhibitory effect by modulating immunity and exerting an anti-inflammatory effect.
At present, stem cells have achieved initial success in children's cerebral palsy, autism and other neurological diseases, and the effect of stem cell therapy is significantly higher than that of traditional rehabilitation training treatment, reducing social and family burdens, improving the quality of life of patients, and lighting up the world for "children of stars"!