University of Wisconsin–Madison

Category: Neurodevelopmental Disabilities

Four Waisman investigators receive prestigious Simons Foundation award to study autism

Four Waisman Center investigators will dig deeper into the function of genes implicated in autism and brain development with support from the prestigious Simons Foundation 2022 Pilot Award.

Waisman Center welcomes new faculty to study impacts of early auditory experiences and speech processing in kids

Carlos Benítez-Barrera, PhD, who leads the Pediatric Auditory Experience and Brain lab, is interested in the impact of early auditory experiences, language development, and speech perception in kids and brings new technical expertise to help advance the field.

The Bone Dysplasia Clinic’s many decades of helping families

The start of the Waisman Center’s Bone Dysplasia Clinic was a case of serendipity. It was 1980 and Richard Pauli, MD, a pediatric geneticist, had just arrived at UW-Madison. Over the course of the year, Pauli settled into his new role at UW Hospital. Then in 1981, he was approached by radiologist Len Langer, MD, with a strange request.

A life full of love and magic: Eva S. Borenitsch

Eva Susan Borenitsch was magical. She knew no limits. “We called her our little unicorn,” says her mom Emily Borenitsch.

Celebrating the Manlick family’s ten years of research participation

James Manlick is going to homecoming this year and he simply can’t contain his excitement. A huge smile lights up his face as he talks about the dance.

UW–Madison’s Ausderau is awarded COVID-19 Response grant from Wisconsin Partnership Program

UW–Madison’s Karla Ausderau, an assistant professor in the School of Education’s Department of Kinesiology, has been awarded a COVID-19 Response Research and Education Award from the Wisconsin Partnership Program (WPP) at the UW–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health.

Artificial intelligence can accelerate clinical diagnosis of fragile X syndrome

An analysis of electronic health records for 1.7 million Wisconsin patients revealed a variety of health problems newly associated with fragile X syndrome.

When research goes remote: adapting studies in the face of COVID-19

By Peter Jurich, Waisman Science Writer With every challenge comes new opportunities. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S. in March 2020, much of the country went on lock-down with only essential services and operations remaining. The Waisman Center was no exception. Essential operations continued in the building and hundreds of employees transitioned to working …

Serving during COVID-19: AAC outreach services

The Communication Development Program (CDP) is an outreach program of the Waisman Center UCEDD at University of Wisconsin, Madison. This program was developed over 30 years ago in partnership with the Dane County Department of Human Services, and specifically the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) unit. The mission of CDP is to enhance community participation, …

Five language outcome measures evaluated for intellectual disabilities studies

A multi-university team of researchers found that expressive language sampling (ELS) can be useful in measuring outcomes in clinical trials targeting fragile X syndrome (FXS). According to their study, ELS, a set of procedures for collecting and analyzing spoken language in natural verbal interactions, yielded five language-related outcome measures that may be useful for treatment studies in intellectual disabilities, especially FXS.