Autism research has proliferated over the past 20 years and the rate at which Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are being diagnosed has increased dramatically. The Center for Disease Control reports the prevalence of ASD at 1 in 110 children and the American Academy of Pediatrics is now recommending routine early screening for ASD. Screening tools have been validated and behavioral, educational, and pharmacological approaches to working with children and adults with ASD are being systematically studied across the U.S. and internationally. Importantly, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved the use of two medications for irritability associated with Autism.

The Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City has stood at the forefront of advances in autism research. This Center was founded with a grant from the Beatrice and Samuel A. Seaver Foundation in 1993, and has been generously funded in part by the Foundation ever since. Under the direction of Dr. Joseph D. Buxbaum, today the Seaver Autism Center functions as a collaborative effort that combines the work of psychiatry, psychology, neurology, molecular genetics, and neuroimaging into an integrated series of unique research programs. Additionally, the Seaver Autism Clinical Program provides state-of-the-art assessment, cutting-edge genetic testing, and treatment in ASD. The Center also strives to translate scientific efforts into optimal community care and has alliances with numerous support groups and community agencies in New York.

The Clinical Practicum, open to AACAP members only, aims to provide the clinician with an update on research in autism spectrum disorders with a focus on implications for clinical care. The program highlights the activities of the center to emphasize endeavors to integrate clinical and basic science research with clinical care in order to inform best practices in the community. The schedule for the program is as follows:

7:30 a.m   Depart Hilton New York for Mount Sinai

8:00 a.m. Welcome and Introductions
  Wayne Goodman, M.D.
  Chairman, Department of Psychiatry

  Jeffrey Newcorn, M.D.
  Division Chief, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

  Overview of the Day
  Joseph Buxbaum, Ph.D.
  Director, Seaver Autism Center
  
  Alexander Kolevzon, M.D.
  Clinical Director, Seaver Autism Center

8:45 a.m. Genetics of Autism Spectrum Disorders
  Joseph Buxbaum, Ph.D.
  
9:45 a.m. Break/Refreshments

10:00 a.m. Diagnosis and Assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorders
  Latha Soorya, Ph.D.

11:00 a.m. Best Practices in the Education of Children with Autism
  Katherine Cody, Psy.D.
  
12:00 p.m. Lunch

1:00 p.m. Current Trends in the Pharmacological Treatment of Autism
  Alexander Kolevzon, M.D.

2:00 p.m. Current Trends in the Behavioral Treatment of Autism
  Latha Soorya, Ph.D.

3:00 p.m. Break / Refreshments

3:15 p.m. Clinical Implications of Neuroimaging Studies in Autism
   David Grodberg, M.D.

4:15 p.m. Case Discussion / Review
  Alexander Kolevzon, M.D.