New tool to improve diagnosis of lifelong condition
New guidelines will help to reduce stigma and improve access to diagnosis and services for a lifelong disability in Australia, researchers say.
Arising from prenatal exposure to alcohol, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) can cause difficulties with attention, learning and memory, communication and behavioural and emotional regulation.
The condition was typically diagnosed in specialists clinics, often based in metropolitan areas and families faced long waits for an assessment, University of Queensland Child Health Research Centre senior fellow and clinical psychologist Natasha Reid said.
But after years of work, researchers, led by Dr Reid, have developed the first guidelines in the space to be approved by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Dr Reid said she hoped the guidelines would mean more practitioners across the country felt comfortable to be involved in assessing the condition.
"These guidelines are of a really high standard," she told AAP.
"We hope what that means is that they're more trustworthy for clinicians and we'll have more clinicians who are wanting to take these guidelines into clinical practice.
"What that means for people with FASD is there's more access to services because that's still a challenge for a lot of people."
Researchers reviewed more than 300 research papers and consulted health professionals, cultural experts, families and carers of people with the disorder over a four-year period.
"The really challenging thing in this space is that internationally there's no agreed set of diagnostic criteria for FASD," Dr Reid said.
"So what we've tried to do here is really have evidence-based diagnostic criteria as part of these guidelines."
Dr Reid said having better access to diagnosis and assessment processes would reduce stigma and improve the lives of people with the condition.
"The primary use of these guidelines are for health professionals but we also hope the guidelines can provide information to people about what is involved in an assessment, and help raise more awareness," she said.
"A big thing we want to do is reduce stigma around FASD, making it so it doesn't matter where you go to access services, it can just be considered a part of routine assessments that are provided in those settings."
More than 40 organisations were involved in the development of guidelines.
New guidelines will help to reduce stigma and improve access to diagnosis and services for a lifelong disability in Australia, researchers say.
Arising from prenatal exposure to alcohol, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) can cause difficulties with attention, learning and memory, communication and behavioural and emotional regulation.
The condition was typically diagnosed in specialists clinics, often based in metropolitan areas and families faced long waits for an assessment, University of Queensland Child Health Research Centre senior fellow and clinical psychologist Natasha Reid said.
But after years of work, researchers, led by Dr Reid, have developed the first guidelines in the space to be approved by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Dr Reid said she hoped the guidelines would mean more practitioners across the country felt comfortable to be involved in assessing the condition.
"These guidelines are of a really high standard," she told AAP.
"We hope what that means is that they're more trustworthy for clinicians and we'll have more clinicians who are wanting to take these guidelines into clinical practice.
"What that means for people with FASD is there's more access to services because that's still a challenge for a lot of people."
Researchers reviewed more than 300 research papers and consulted health professionals, cultural experts, families and carers of people with the disorder over a four-year period.
"The really challenging thing in this space is that internationally there's no agreed set of diagnostic criteria for FASD," Dr Reid said.
"So what we've tried to do here is really have evidence-based diagnostic criteria as part of these guidelines."
Dr Reid said having better access to diagnosis and assessment processes would reduce stigma and improve the lives of people with the condition.
"The primary use of these guidelines are for health professionals but we also hope the guidelines can provide information to people about what is involved in an assessment, and help raise more awareness," she said.
"A big thing we want to do is reduce stigma around FASD, making it so it doesn't matter where you go to access services, it can just be considered a part of routine assessments that are provided in those settings."
More than 40 organisations were involved in the development of guidelines.
New guidelines will help to reduce stigma and improve access to diagnosis and services for a lifelong disability in Australia, researchers say.
Arising from prenatal exposure to alcohol, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) can cause difficulties with attention, learning and memory, communication and behavioural and emotional regulation.
The condition was typically diagnosed in specialists clinics, often based in metropolitan areas and families faced long waits for an assessment, University of Queensland Child Health Research Centre senior fellow and clinical psychologist Natasha Reid said.
But after years of work, researchers, led by Dr Reid, have developed the first guidelines in the space to be approved by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Dr Reid said she hoped the guidelines would mean more practitioners across the country felt comfortable to be involved in assessing the condition.
"These guidelines are of a really high standard," she told AAP.
"We hope what that means is that they're more trustworthy for clinicians and we'll have more clinicians who are wanting to take these guidelines into clinical practice.
"What that means for people with FASD is there's more access to services because that's still a challenge for a lot of people."
Researchers reviewed more than 300 research papers and consulted health professionals, cultural experts, families and carers of people with the disorder over a four-year period.
"The really challenging thing in this space is that internationally there's no agreed set of diagnostic criteria for FASD," Dr Reid said.
"So what we've tried to do here is really have evidence-based diagnostic criteria as part of these guidelines."
Dr Reid said having better access to diagnosis and assessment processes would reduce stigma and improve the lives of people with the condition.
"The primary use of these guidelines are for health professionals but we also hope the guidelines can provide information to people about what is involved in an assessment, and help raise more awareness," she said.
"A big thing we want to do is reduce stigma around FASD, making it so it doesn't matter where you go to access services, it can just be considered a part of routine assessments that are provided in those settings."
More than 40 organisations were involved in the development of guidelines.
New guidelines will help to reduce stigma and improve access to diagnosis and services for a lifelong disability in Australia, researchers say.
Arising from prenatal exposure to alcohol, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) can cause difficulties with attention, learning and memory, communication and behavioural and emotional regulation.
The condition was typically diagnosed in specialists clinics, often based in metropolitan areas and families faced long waits for an assessment, University of Queensland Child Health Research Centre senior fellow and clinical psychologist Natasha Reid said.
But after years of work, researchers, led by Dr Reid, have developed the first guidelines in the space to be approved by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Dr Reid said she hoped the guidelines would mean more practitioners across the country felt comfortable to be involved in assessing the condition.
"These guidelines are of a really high standard," she told AAP.
"We hope what that means is that they're more trustworthy for clinicians and we'll have more clinicians who are wanting to take these guidelines into clinical practice.
"What that means for people with FASD is there's more access to services because that's still a challenge for a lot of people."
Researchers reviewed more than 300 research papers and consulted health professionals, cultural experts, families and carers of people with the disorder over a four-year period.
"The really challenging thing in this space is that internationally there's no agreed set of diagnostic criteria for FASD," Dr Reid said.
"So what we've tried to do here is really have evidence-based diagnostic criteria as part of these guidelines."
Dr Reid said having better access to diagnosis and assessment processes would reduce stigma and improve the lives of people with the condition.
"The primary use of these guidelines are for health professionals but we also hope the guidelines can provide information to people about what is involved in an assessment, and help raise more awareness," she said.
"A big thing we want to do is reduce stigma around FASD, making it so it doesn't matter where you go to access services, it can just be considered a part of routine assessments that are provided in those settings."
More than 40 organisations were involved in the development of guidelines.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
West Australian
14 minutes ago
- West Australian
Special care changes needed as costs push patients away
High specialist medical costs cause almost two million Australians to delay or skip appointments, but a report suggests stripping public funding to doctors charging excessive fees could be part of the remedy. About 1.9 million Australians are delaying or skipping critical medical care due to exorbitant fees for specialist doctors, a report by public policy think tank the Grattan Institute has found. Some private specialist doctors charge patients two to three times more than the rate Medicare sets for those services, the report found. It said patients of one specialist forked out an average of $300 per year in 2023 - up 73 per cent since 2010. Average out-of-pocket costs for extreme-fee-charging specialists in 2023 reached $671 for psychiatry services and more than $350 for endocrinology, cardiology, paediatrics, immunology and neurology services. The high costs leave critical health care out of reach for millions, causing patients in poorer pockets of Australia to wait months or years for urgent appointments, and leading to missed diagnoses, avoidable pain and added pressure on hospitals. About four in 10 Australians visited a specialist in 2023/24. About two-thirds across all specialties are private appointments, with patients receiving a Medicare rebate and paying a gap fee. Grattan's Health Program director Peter Breadon said the system was broken from start to end. "Everywhere, from how the system is planned and how training is funded through to how we target public investment and integrate the system between primary care and specialist care, it all really needs a lot of change," he told AAP. Grattan's recommendations include scrapping Medicare subsidies to specialists who charge excessive fees and publicly naming them. "Hopefully it would discourage those specialists who are charging really unreasonable fees, but this is a problem that needs many solutions," Mr Breadon said. The report also recommends governments provide one million extra specialist appointment services every year in areas that receive the least care, a system in which GPs can get written advice from other specialists, modernise public specialist clinics, and allocate $160 million to expand specialist training for undersupplied specialties and rural training. Australian Medical Association President Danielle McMullen said public hospital underinvestment and lagging Medicare rebates made it harder for patients. "The risks of delaying medical care are that the health problem gets worse," she said, adding it also puts pressure on GPs and hospitals in public and private clinics. The doctors' association supports most of Grattan's recommendations, but said removing Medicare funding from specialists who charged excessive fees was not practical. As governments negotiate the National Health Reform agreement, Dr McMullen urged leaders to sort out longer-term funding for public hospitals and develop a health workforce data tracker to show where investment was needed. Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said private health insurers and specialists needed to do more to protect patients from exorbitant bills. He said the Albanese government would upgrade the Medical Costs Finder, which helps patients find the best value for specialist medical advice, and was committed to working with stakeholders to improve cost transparency.
Perth Now
25 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Special care changes needed as costs push patients away
High specialist medical costs cause almost two million Australians to delay or skip appointments, but a report suggests stripping public funding to doctors charging excessive fees could be part of the remedy. About 1.9 million Australians are delaying or skipping critical medical care due to exorbitant fees for specialist doctors, a report by public policy think tank the Grattan Institute has found. Some private specialist doctors charge patients two to three times more than the rate Medicare sets for those services, the report found. It said patients of one specialist forked out an average of $300 per year in 2023 - up 73 per cent since 2010. Average out-of-pocket costs for extreme-fee-charging specialists in 2023 reached $671 for psychiatry services and more than $350 for endocrinology, cardiology, paediatrics, immunology and neurology services. The high costs leave critical health care out of reach for millions, causing patients in poorer pockets of Australia to wait months or years for urgent appointments, and leading to missed diagnoses, avoidable pain and added pressure on hospitals. About four in 10 Australians visited a specialist in 2023/24. About two-thirds across all specialties are private appointments, with patients receiving a Medicare rebate and paying a gap fee. Grattan's Health Program director Peter Breadon said the system was broken from start to end. "Everywhere, from how the system is planned and how training is funded through to how we target public investment and integrate the system between primary care and specialist care, it all really needs a lot of change," he told AAP. Grattan's recommendations include scrapping Medicare subsidies to specialists who charge excessive fees and publicly naming them. "Hopefully it would discourage those specialists who are charging really unreasonable fees, but this is a problem that needs many solutions," Mr Breadon said. The report also recommends governments provide one million extra specialist appointment services every year in areas that receive the least care, a system in which GPs can get written advice from other specialists, modernise public specialist clinics, and allocate $160 million to expand specialist training for undersupplied specialties and rural training. Australian Medical Association President Danielle McMullen said public hospital underinvestment and lagging Medicare rebates made it harder for patients. "The risks of delaying medical care are that the health problem gets worse," she said, adding it also puts pressure on GPs and hospitals in public and private clinics. The doctors' association supports most of Grattan's recommendations, but said removing Medicare funding from specialists who charged excessive fees was not practical. As governments negotiate the National Health Reform agreement, Dr McMullen urged leaders to sort out longer-term funding for public hospitals and develop a health workforce data tracker to show where investment was needed. Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said private health insurers and specialists needed to do more to protect patients from exorbitant bills. He said the Albanese government would upgrade the Medical Costs Finder, which helps patients find the best value for specialist medical advice, and was committed to working with stakeholders to improve cost transparency.
The Advertiser
4 days ago
- The Advertiser
Cochlear launches new implant, downgrades guidance
Hearing implant developer and manufacturer Cochlear is sounding out the market, launching its latest implant and cutting earnings guidance on the same day. Weaker-than-expected sales forced the health technology company to trim net profit expectations to between $390 to $400 million, down from $410 million to $430 million, but still higher than FY24's $387 million result. Implant sales were expected to increase by around 10 per cent this financial year, with growth weighted to the emerging markets as expansion in developed markets undershot expectations. The update came as Cochlear launched its latest implant in Australia, the first of its kind with upgradeable firmware and internal memory. Investors opted to take the good news over the bad, sending Cochlear shares 0.4 per cent higher to $271.65 after dipping more than nine per cent at the market's open. Jenny Young, one of the first to try the new device, was in her late 40s when her audiologist told her she would need hearing aids. Phone conversations were hard, she needed friends and family to repeat themselves and the country music shows she loved had become muffled and unclear. "I just gave up because I didn't know what song was coming on," Ms Young, now 58, told AAP. She initially ignored her audiologist's advice until life became too difficult. "Sometimes you felt excluded, and you tended to exclude yourself because you weren't quite sure what was said, and you didn't want to pop in and embarrass yourself," Ms Young said. After mixed results with hearing aids, her audiologist suggested her for a trial of the Cochlear's new implant, the 8th generation of the device which directly stimulates the auditory nerve, as opposed to hearing aids which amplify sound. The new internal memory allowed users to store their personal hearing settings on the implant, while upgrades could improve the way the auditory nerve was stimulated, implant program director Robert Briggs said. "That's a big change, and in the longer run we're hoping new stimulation strategies will allow better clarity of hearing and better speech understanding," Professor Briggs told AAP. The new device was developed over a decade with the help of Cochlear's 600-strong research and development teams across six global centres. One in six Australians, or 3.6 million people, suffer from some form of hearing loss. Cochlear has provided more than 750,000 hearing implants to people around the world over four decades, and helped children born deaf to hear for the first time. When Ms Young first had the implant, she said interpreting the signals was like learning a new language. "To me it sounded like a lot of magpies talking all at once in my head," she said. But with time and a little patience from friends and family, she was soon back where she wanted to be. "Six weeks after I got my implant, I went to the Deni Ute Muster in the front row and watched my country music," she said. "It has given me back my social aspect, my confidence ... It's just given me a new lease for life." She urged anyone noticing changes in their hearing to get checked. "I just want to suggest anybody that has trouble hearing or think they're having a difficulty - get onto it," she said. "Don't sit back like I did." Hearing implant developer and manufacturer Cochlear is sounding out the market, launching its latest implant and cutting earnings guidance on the same day. Weaker-than-expected sales forced the health technology company to trim net profit expectations to between $390 to $400 million, down from $410 million to $430 million, but still higher than FY24's $387 million result. Implant sales were expected to increase by around 10 per cent this financial year, with growth weighted to the emerging markets as expansion in developed markets undershot expectations. The update came as Cochlear launched its latest implant in Australia, the first of its kind with upgradeable firmware and internal memory. Investors opted to take the good news over the bad, sending Cochlear shares 0.4 per cent higher to $271.65 after dipping more than nine per cent at the market's open. Jenny Young, one of the first to try the new device, was in her late 40s when her audiologist told her she would need hearing aids. Phone conversations were hard, she needed friends and family to repeat themselves and the country music shows she loved had become muffled and unclear. "I just gave up because I didn't know what song was coming on," Ms Young, now 58, told AAP. She initially ignored her audiologist's advice until life became too difficult. "Sometimes you felt excluded, and you tended to exclude yourself because you weren't quite sure what was said, and you didn't want to pop in and embarrass yourself," Ms Young said. After mixed results with hearing aids, her audiologist suggested her for a trial of the Cochlear's new implant, the 8th generation of the device which directly stimulates the auditory nerve, as opposed to hearing aids which amplify sound. The new internal memory allowed users to store their personal hearing settings on the implant, while upgrades could improve the way the auditory nerve was stimulated, implant program director Robert Briggs said. "That's a big change, and in the longer run we're hoping new stimulation strategies will allow better clarity of hearing and better speech understanding," Professor Briggs told AAP. The new device was developed over a decade with the help of Cochlear's 600-strong research and development teams across six global centres. One in six Australians, or 3.6 million people, suffer from some form of hearing loss. Cochlear has provided more than 750,000 hearing implants to people around the world over four decades, and helped children born deaf to hear for the first time. When Ms Young first had the implant, she said interpreting the signals was like learning a new language. "To me it sounded like a lot of magpies talking all at once in my head," she said. But with time and a little patience from friends and family, she was soon back where she wanted to be. "Six weeks after I got my implant, I went to the Deni Ute Muster in the front row and watched my country music," she said. "It has given me back my social aspect, my confidence ... It's just given me a new lease for life." She urged anyone noticing changes in their hearing to get checked. "I just want to suggest anybody that has trouble hearing or think they're having a difficulty - get onto it," she said. "Don't sit back like I did." Hearing implant developer and manufacturer Cochlear is sounding out the market, launching its latest implant and cutting earnings guidance on the same day. Weaker-than-expected sales forced the health technology company to trim net profit expectations to between $390 to $400 million, down from $410 million to $430 million, but still higher than FY24's $387 million result. Implant sales were expected to increase by around 10 per cent this financial year, with growth weighted to the emerging markets as expansion in developed markets undershot expectations. The update came as Cochlear launched its latest implant in Australia, the first of its kind with upgradeable firmware and internal memory. Investors opted to take the good news over the bad, sending Cochlear shares 0.4 per cent higher to $271.65 after dipping more than nine per cent at the market's open. Jenny Young, one of the first to try the new device, was in her late 40s when her audiologist told her she would need hearing aids. Phone conversations were hard, she needed friends and family to repeat themselves and the country music shows she loved had become muffled and unclear. "I just gave up because I didn't know what song was coming on," Ms Young, now 58, told AAP. She initially ignored her audiologist's advice until life became too difficult. "Sometimes you felt excluded, and you tended to exclude yourself because you weren't quite sure what was said, and you didn't want to pop in and embarrass yourself," Ms Young said. After mixed results with hearing aids, her audiologist suggested her for a trial of the Cochlear's new implant, the 8th generation of the device which directly stimulates the auditory nerve, as opposed to hearing aids which amplify sound. The new internal memory allowed users to store their personal hearing settings on the implant, while upgrades could improve the way the auditory nerve was stimulated, implant program director Robert Briggs said. "That's a big change, and in the longer run we're hoping new stimulation strategies will allow better clarity of hearing and better speech understanding," Professor Briggs told AAP. The new device was developed over a decade with the help of Cochlear's 600-strong research and development teams across six global centres. One in six Australians, or 3.6 million people, suffer from some form of hearing loss. Cochlear has provided more than 750,000 hearing implants to people around the world over four decades, and helped children born deaf to hear for the first time. When Ms Young first had the implant, she said interpreting the signals was like learning a new language. "To me it sounded like a lot of magpies talking all at once in my head," she said. But with time and a little patience from friends and family, she was soon back where she wanted to be. "Six weeks after I got my implant, I went to the Deni Ute Muster in the front row and watched my country music," she said. "It has given me back my social aspect, my confidence ... It's just given me a new lease for life." She urged anyone noticing changes in their hearing to get checked. "I just want to suggest anybody that has trouble hearing or think they're having a difficulty - get onto it," she said. "Don't sit back like I did." Hearing implant developer and manufacturer Cochlear is sounding out the market, launching its latest implant and cutting earnings guidance on the same day. Weaker-than-expected sales forced the health technology company to trim net profit expectations to between $390 to $400 million, down from $410 million to $430 million, but still higher than FY24's $387 million result. Implant sales were expected to increase by around 10 per cent this financial year, with growth weighted to the emerging markets as expansion in developed markets undershot expectations. The update came as Cochlear launched its latest implant in Australia, the first of its kind with upgradeable firmware and internal memory. Investors opted to take the good news over the bad, sending Cochlear shares 0.4 per cent higher to $271.65 after dipping more than nine per cent at the market's open. Jenny Young, one of the first to try the new device, was in her late 40s when her audiologist told her she would need hearing aids. Phone conversations were hard, she needed friends and family to repeat themselves and the country music shows she loved had become muffled and unclear. "I just gave up because I didn't know what song was coming on," Ms Young, now 58, told AAP. She initially ignored her audiologist's advice until life became too difficult. "Sometimes you felt excluded, and you tended to exclude yourself because you weren't quite sure what was said, and you didn't want to pop in and embarrass yourself," Ms Young said. After mixed results with hearing aids, her audiologist suggested her for a trial of the Cochlear's new implant, the 8th generation of the device which directly stimulates the auditory nerve, as opposed to hearing aids which amplify sound. The new internal memory allowed users to store their personal hearing settings on the implant, while upgrades could improve the way the auditory nerve was stimulated, implant program director Robert Briggs said. "That's a big change, and in the longer run we're hoping new stimulation strategies will allow better clarity of hearing and better speech understanding," Professor Briggs told AAP. The new device was developed over a decade with the help of Cochlear's 600-strong research and development teams across six global centres. One in six Australians, or 3.6 million people, suffer from some form of hearing loss. Cochlear has provided more than 750,000 hearing implants to people around the world over four decades, and helped children born deaf to hear for the first time. When Ms Young first had the implant, she said interpreting the signals was like learning a new language. "To me it sounded like a lot of magpies talking all at once in my head," she said. But with time and a little patience from friends and family, she was soon back where she wanted to be. "Six weeks after I got my implant, I went to the Deni Ute Muster in the front row and watched my country music," she said. "It has given me back my social aspect, my confidence ... It's just given me a new lease for life." She urged anyone noticing changes in their hearing to get checked. "I just want to suggest anybody that has trouble hearing or think they're having a difficulty - get onto it," she said. "Don't sit back like I did."
