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Sound Medicine -- October 25, 2003

Hosts Barbara Lewis and Dr. Ora Pescovitz talk to physicians and researchers about:

Asperger's Syndrome

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Obesity in Americans

Real Media | Windows Media

Asperger's Syndrome

Asperger's Syndrome is a recently recognized disorder with a clear link to autism. It was first researched by Viennese physician Hans Asperger in 1944. He focused on young boys who had normal intelligence and language skills, but still had classic symptoms of autism, namely poor social and communication skills.

50 years later, Hans Asperger's findings were published, and Asperger's Syndrome is now listed in the DSM-4, the official guide of psychiatric disorders. A conference on autism and Asperger's will be held in Indianapolis in early November. Among the key participants is our guest, Michael John Carley. He and his son have been diagnosed with Asperger's just a few years ago. Mr. Carley has formed a global support group in his hometown of New York City. He says it was a relief to have a name for his disorder. He received his diagnosis a few weeks after his son. He says people with Asperger's Syndrome want to communicate with others and most importantly, want to be understood.

Resources:

Contact Michael John Carley via GRASP, the Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership. Email the organization at info@grasp.org.

Visit the Autism Conference Web site for details about the program.

For an outline of Asperger's Syndrome read this helpful fact sheet from Web MD.

Read more about diagnosis of pervasive developmental disorders, including Asperger's Syndrome, from the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities.

The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Some people make huge contributions to life after they are dead. Safe cars, good weapons, great police work and many medical advances owe their success to cadavers. Author and Salon.com columnist Mary Roach's book is entitled Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. Roach also writes for publications like Outside, GQ, and The New York Times Magazine. To research Stiff, she visited facilities that use cadavers for research purposes, many of which have restricted access. She reports on the benefits we all receive from the bodies donated to science.

She describes her visit to the "Body Farm," where forensics researchers study how bodies decompose. She reports that bodies are treated with great respect, and that although the experiments sound gruesome, great advancements in medicine and safety have been made because of them.

Resources:

Find Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach at Amazon.com.

Read about the origins of the Body Farm in this CNN article.

Donate your body to the IU School of Medicine and help educate future physicians and dentists. Learn more from the Anatomical Education Program at IUSM.

Obesity in Americans

Undoubtedly one of the biggest health stories this century will be obesity in Americans. Nearly one-third of American adults are obese, and the prevalence of obesity has increased 61% since 1991. The estimated annual medical spending due to overweight and obesity in 2002 was $92.6 billion dollars. Still, despite public awareness campaigns, the number of overweight and obese people continues to increase, with a generation of children now at risk of becoming obese before reaching adulthood.

Dr. Ann Zerr, associate professor of clinical medicine at the IU School of Medicine, discusses low-carbohydrate diets and the cultural habits that foster obesity: little exercise and super-sized fast food. She says that despite claims of fad-diets, the best way to avoid obesity and overweight is moderate eating and daily exercise.

Resources:

Get current statistics on obesity from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

The American Obesity Association bills itself as the "most comprehensive site on obesity and overweight on the Internet." Read news, research, factsheets and personal stories.