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There are no Commonwealth or state laws in Australia that require educational authorities to provide individualised transition plans (ITPs) to secondary students with disabilities. It is argued that, in lieu of legislation, Australia's signed commitment to international treaties and national policies obliges educational jurisdictions to provide ITPs to secondary students with disabilities to improve the postschool outcomes for this vulnerable population. Document analysis methods were used to analyse these international treaties and national policies for statements aligned with evidence-based transition skills and predictors. Almost 90 transition-aligned statements were found, accounting for all evidence-based transition skill categories and most of the transition predictor categories. Implications for policymakers and educational jurisdictions are discussed.

Understanding the needs of adolescents and emerging adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) with respect to transition to postsecondary education is critical to development of user-informed transition programming. Parents of adolescents and emerging adults with ASD (n = 52) and ADHD (n = 47) completed an online survey. Social interaction training and independent living training were services frequently requested by parents in the ASD group. Additionally, parents of postsecondary students with ASD endorsed distinct challenges with self-advocacy, managing emotions, and managing personal/adaptive skills relative to postsecondary students with ADHD. The profile of parent-reported difficulties and needed services compared to transition to postsecondary education for students with ASD is distinguishable from that for ADHD, suggesting individualized transition planning and in-college supports.

ObjectivesTo analyse the findings of bone marrow examinations performed in children with isolated thrombocytopenia at Lady Ridgeway Hospital for children, Sri Lanka.MethodsA record based retrospective study was carried out of all bone marrow examinations (BME) performed in children with isolated thrombocytopenia from May 2018 to April 2023. Request forms and biopsy reports were reviewed to extract the data. Permission was obtained from administration authorities to conduct the study. Data was analysed using SPSS version 22.ResultsA total of 131 BME were performed in children with isolated thrombocytopenia during the study period. The male to female ratio was 1.29:1. The proportion of children less than 5 years of age was 50.4%. Majority (98.5%) were referred by paediatric specialists. Among the children who underwent BME, 82(62.6%) presented with bleeding manifestations, 4(3%) had pyrexia of unknown origin and 3(2.3%) had joint symptoms. Of the total bone marrow examinations, 120(91.6%) were consistent with immune mediated thrombocytopenia (ITP). In the remaining group only one (0.8%) had a malignancy, who was later found to have a mediastinal mass. Other findings in BME are inherited bone marrow disorders (5.3%) and reactive marrow (2.3%).ConclusionBME confirmed the diagnosis of ITP in the majority of children with isolated thrombocytopenia and clinical suspicion. Malignancy was rare and was associated with atypical clinical findings.

We’ve published data in the recent past about the use of adjunctive pulsus paradoxus (PP) estimation in acute asthma as a severity predictor.1 David Wertheim and colleagues in Brighton, develop this concept by testing a standard pulse oximeter (enhanced by adapted software) in measuring both (the notoriously observer dependent) respiratory rate and degree of PP against the yardstick, plethysmography. Aside from a modest degree of artefact, the tool performed well both technically and predictively, a step forward in refining what is usually a crude barometer of severity: oxygen saturation, heart rate and gut feeling. We know that illness scores including PEWS (you’ve all read the eye-opening EPOCH trial) are at best vague approximations and, on a good day, only modest predictors of outcome. This refinement, therefore, is welcome news. See page 1083

To compare the status of transition planning for students with intellectual disability, autism, or other disabilities, we used data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, a federally funded, national study of the secondary and postschool experiences of students with disabilities. Results show that although transition planning had been conducted for the majority of students, few of them took a leadership role in their transition planning. Students with autism or intellectual disability were significantly less likely than students with other disabilities to take a leadership role. The majority of the active participants in transition planning were school-based personnel. We also found limited participation from other agencies/support persons (e.g., vocational rehabilitation). Students with autism or intellectual disability had more identified needs for support after school than did students with other disabilities.

The transition outcomes for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families are less than desirable. A survey of parent stressors, resources, coping/appraisals, and adaptation to transition was completed by 226 parents. The mediating mechanisms between stressors and parent outcomes were identified. At the indicator level, three stressors (i.e., autism severity, mental health crisis/challenging behaviors, and filial obligation), four resources (i.e., general social support, transition planning quality, parent–teacher alliance, and parenting efficacy), and three coping styles (i.e., problem-focused coping, avoidance-focused coping, and optimism) predicted parents’ outcomes (i.e., burden, transition experience, subjective health, and quality of life). At the structural level, optimism, emotion-coping strategies, and resources mediated the relationships between stressors and parental outcomes. Research and practical applications are discussed.

U.S. policy interventions encourage earlier provision of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) services to support students and youth with disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) during the transition from school to work. We analyzed Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA-911) data using multivariable logistic regression to determine the association of VR services receipt with employment outcomes for students ages 16–21, same-age non-student youth and young adults with ASD. Students with autism received job-related services (job search, job placement, and on-the-job supports) at rates significantly below comparison groups, even though odds of successful employment at VR exit were significantly higher if they received these services. Findings suggest that rates of employment among students with autism might be improved with intentional delivery of job-related services.

This is a great article written by members of the Special Olympics International team based in Washington DC, USA. Christakis DA et al (JAMA Pediatr. 2025;179(5):492–493. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2025.0096) define inclusive health as enabling people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (PWIDD) to have equitable access to affordable, quality health services. This viewpoint illustrates how artificial intelligence (AI) may help to contribute to reducing these inequalities and promote inclusive healthcare. They discuss the barriers to inclusive healthcare and how AI may contribute to improving healthcare delivery for PWIDD. There are sections on history-taking and data collection, communication, physician training, health system navigation, smart homes and devices and PWIDD-specific predictive analytics. It is interesting to see how AI innovations in all of these areas will help equitable access to healthcare and improving health for PWIDD. The principles are also there for the general population. The authors have then gone on to demonstrate how AI could be helpful with this article. They put the text into ChatGPT and asked it to rewrite the article at a fifth grade reading level and keep the format the same. The result is attached in one of the supplements. It is incredible to see the change; they looked at reading levels and, using the Flesch-Kincaid grade level showed the original article to have a score of 17.2 and the rewrite was at 10.0. The word count was more than halved and went from 1360 to 565 words. Lucina also learnt about other readability scores, the Gunning Fog Index, the Coleman Liau Index, the SMOG Index and the Automated Readability Index.

Background and Aim Platelets antigens, Anti-platelets antibodies, serum leptin measurement may be important in defining the pathogenesis of thrombocytopenic states. Methods In this study we measured the platelets CD41, CD61, CD62P, Platelets IgG, IgM by flowcytometry and serum leptin by ELISA of 20 children diagnosed as ITP and 20 normal children as control. Results We observed That there were no significant difference in white blood cells count, hemoglobin concentration between ITP patients and controls. Platelets count was significantly decreased, and mean platelet volume (MPV) was significantly increased in patients than controls P=0.000. The percentage of CD41expressing platelets was significantly lower in ITP children compared to controls (P=0.001) but the percentage of CD61expressing platelets was not significantly different between ITP patients and controls. Platelet activation marker CD62P was significantly expressed in patients than controls (0.000). Furthermore, the amount of CD62P per cell, represented by the MFI was significantly higher in patients than controls (0.000). The percentage of platelets associated IgM and IgG were was significantly increased in patients than controls (P=0.000). Also the MFI of IgM and IgG were significantly higher in patients than controls .Finally the concentration of serum leptin was increased in patients than controls (P=0.000) (table 2). There was a negative correlation between The platelets count and Platelets IgG (P= 0.000 and r= –0.88). Conclusion We concluded that The demonstration of antiplatelet antibodies (PAIgG, PAIgM) and decreased detection of platelet surface antigens (CD41, CD61) in children with immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) have a diagnostic and pathogenesis role.

Vocational outcomes among transition-age youth receiving special education services are critically poor and have only incrementally improved since the implementation of the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act. Few studies highlight whether interviewing may be critical to obtaining vocational outcomes such as competitive employment or internships. This study evaluated vocational interviewing and outcomes among 656 transition-age youth receiving special education pre-employment transition services from 47 schools. Results suggest 20.8% of these youth were currently employed, and 88.8% of these employed youth interviewed prior to obtaining their job, which is higher than anecdotal evidence suggests and speaks to the importance of job interview skills as an intervention target for special education pre-employment transition services. We discuss the implications and directions for further study.