More commonly associated with mother-child bonding and pregnancy, oxytocin may be useful for treating autism.
Credit: iStockphoto
Even after a single infusion two weeks earlier, they remained experts in the ability to recognise emotions in spoken neutral sentences whereas those who had received placebo were no longer experts, said Hollander.
Hollander explained that oxytocin promises to have an important impact on the core symptoms of autism and that it would also provide a much needed medication to improve the symptoms of the disorder.
Currently, the only medicine approved in the U.S. for patients with autism is risperidone, which treats aggression or self-injury, but not core symptoms of the illness.
"Oxytocin seems to be the first investigative treatment approach that holds promise for treating core symptoms like social cognition problems," said Hollander.
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