Human Behavior

Citation:

Barnes,K., Coughlin,F., O'Leary,H., Bruck,N., Bazin,G., Beinecke,E., Walco,A., Cantwell,N., Kaufmann,W. (2015). Anxiety-like behavior in Rett syndrome: characteristics and assesment by anxiety scales. Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders, 7(30).

Summary of paper:

Rett syndrome is a neurological disorder prevalent in females. Clinical diagnosis consists of an irregular MeCP2 protein present in an overly-abundant or elongated manner. Additionally, identification of key behaviors present in the regression period such as hand-wringing, uncontrolled laughter, and other social abnormalities plays a key role in establishing a diagnosis. This paper focuses on the profiles of anxiety and anxious behaviors in 74 young girls. After the parental completion of various behavioral surveys, researchers characterized and scaled the social behaviors. Their findings indicate that, though abnormally manifested, anxiety is a large component of the behavioral profile of those with Rett syndrome. Due to the uniqueness of anxious behavior in these children given their differently abled bodies, it was found that the ADAMS scales were most reliable.