Sound Medicine -- August 31, 2002

Barbara Lewis and Dr. David Crabb talk to physicians and experts about:

Risperidone and autism
Family Medicine Scholars Consortium Program

Risperidone and autism

Risperidone is an anti-psychotic drug used to treat schizophrenia in adults, but it's recently proven successful in reducing aggressive and self-injurious behavior in autistic children. Chris McDougle, MD, from the Indiana University School of Medicine took part in this National Institute of Mental Health (NIHM) study, which included 101 autistic children ages 5 to 17.

Dr. McDougle describes autism. He says that although its onset is in childhood, patients do not outgrow it. Its root cause is unknown. Symptoms include difficulty responding socially, poor language skills, and restrictive, repetitive behaviors. Not all autistic children display aggressive behavior, he notes, and most will outgrow it. Still, these behaviors can can result in severe injury.

Dr. McDougle explains how risperidone reduces brain dopamine and enhances brain seratonin, which suppresses aggression and enhances social behavior. In the NIMH study, seventy percent of the children taking the drug markedly and rapidly improved. Aggression could be reduced nearly tenfold in a matter of days. Some kids experienced weight-gain on the drug.

Whether the FDA will approve the drug for treating autistic children is unclear, Dr. McDougle says, especially since the drug doesn't address core symptoms of the condition. He says the drug may be approved for treating aggression. In his next study, Dr. McDougle will compare the use of risperidone with behavior therapy for treating these symptoms.

Dr. McDougle is professor of psychiatry, of pediatrics and of neurobiology, and chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at the IU School of Medicine.

Resources

Read a news story about the study from the IU School of Medicine news room.

An abstract of the article reporting the study's findings appears in the August 1, 2002 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Get more information about the drug risperidone from MEDLINEplus -- including its benefits, risks and side effects.

Family Medicine Scholars Consortium Program

To address the availability of good basic health care in Indiana, every summer medical students from the IU School of Medicine are matched with a family medicine physician-mentor somewhere in Indiana. The goal is to entice medical students to practice family medicine and to encourage them to stay in Indiana and practice in underserved areas of the state. So far, the results of the Family Medicine Scholars Consortium Program have been very promising.

Twins Roderick and Broderick Rhyant both went through this mentoring program and both became family medicine physicians. Now they serve as mentors themselves, taking in students each summer. The Drs. Rhyant discuss their student life, how they were influenced by their summer experiences, and they talk about their current practice, including challenges involved working in an underserved community. Roderick remembers wanting to be a family doctor like the kindly Marcus Welby since he was a small boy.

As mentors, the doctors maintain contact with their summer students, giving them skills in exams and procedures, as well as showing them the importance of understanding the community they serve.

Resources

Medical students and others can find information about the Family Medicine Scholars Consortium Programs from the IU School of Medicine Department of Family Medicine.

Find information about the supply of physicians in the U.S. from the American Association of Medical Colleges.

Upcoming program:
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