We have posted previously about the use of physical interventions in services for people with learning disabilities and challenging behavioiur, with BILD estimating their use in around half of all people with learning disabilities and challenging behaviour. (BILD link). The researchers in this organisational case study were interested in whether the adoption of organisation-wide positive [read the full story…]
Yesterday we posted about a U.S. review which identified the small number of studies on substance abuse and the lack of clear estimates of prevalence. Normally, here at Elf towers, we only identify studies that are reviews of literature, or single studies that report results. But given yesterday’s posting, we thought it might be interesting [read the full story…]
We have posted previously about substance abuse in people with learning disabilities. A study in the Netherlands found estimates of the occurrence of substance use varied greatly, but that alcohol was reported to be used most often, even though this was at lower rates than reported in the general population. We also identified a study [read the full story…]
Self injurious behaviour in people with learning disabilities can have a major impact on quality of life, in addition to physical harm. Positive behaviour approaches have been showing some degree of success in supporting people with self injurious behaviour, and this case study investigated the possibility of combining pharmacological strategies with positive behaviour support plans. [read the full story…]
We posted last year about a review of the literature on the effectiveness of psychotherapy with people with learning disabilities which suggested that there was evidence that it could be moderately effective. However, the authors urged some caution as the studies they reviews did not include any randomised controlled trials. This current review summarises the [read the full story…]
Our friends at the Dental Elf have brought these updated guidelines to our attention. This is what they said: These guidelines were originally a joint initiative between the Development Group for Community Dental Practice of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of The Royal College of Surgeons of England and the British Society for Disability and Oral [read the full story…]
We have posted previously about issues relating to cancer screening in people with learning disabilities and the impact this has on early identification of signs and symptoms and consequent timely treatment. The researchers from the improving health and lives learning disabilities public health observatory (LDPHO) were interested to know whether reasonable adjustments were being made [read the full story…]
The researchers in this US study were looking to compare a range of indicators of health status and service use between adults with learning disabilities, with and without Down syndrome. They compared 1,199 people using services who had Down syndrome (DS) with a comparative sample of 11,182 people with learning disabilities who did not have [read the full story…]
Clozapine is an atypical antipsychotic medication used to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia, most usually used as a treatment of last resort where people have not responded to other anti-psychotic treatments. It has a number of severe side effects including and can also cause the excessive production of saliva and weight gain.. The researchers in [read the full story…]
Dementia has been shown to be present at higher rates in adults with learning disabilities, with people with Down syndrome being at significantly increased risk of developing early onset dementia. The researchers in this Italian study were keen to look at whether approaches to dementia-derived environment, input from specialist personnel or patient-oriented intervention strategies had [read the full story…]
