Biology subjects

Manelis, L.

Publications and source records attributed to Manelis, L..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Using computer vision to quantify facial expressions of children with autism during naturalistic social interactions

BackgroundDifficulties with non-verbal communication, including atypical use of facial expressions, are a core feature of autism. Quantifying atypical use of facial expressions during naturalistic social interactions in a reliable, objective, and direct manner is difficult, but potentially possible with facial analysis computer vision algorithms that identify facial expressions in video recordings. MethodsWe analyzed >5 million video frames from 100 verbal children, 2-7-years-old (72 with autism and 28 controls), who were recorded during a [~]45-minute ADOS-2 assessment using modules 2 or 3, where they interacted with a clinician. Three different facial analysis algorithms (iMotions, FaceReader, and Py-Feat) were used to identify the presence of six facial expressions (anger, fear, sadness, surprise, disgust, and happiness) in each video frame. We then compared results across algorithms and across autism and control groups using ANCOVA analyses while controlling for the age and sex of participating children. ResultsThere were significant differences in the performance of the three facial analysis algorithms including differences in the proportion of frames identified as containing a face and frames classified as containing each of the examined facial expressions. Nevertheless, analyses across all three algorithms demonstrated that there were no significant differences in the quantity of facial expressions produced by children with autism and controls. LimitationsOur study was limited to verbal children with autism who completed ADOS-2 assessments using modules 2 and 3 and were able to sit in a stable manner while facing a wall mounted camera. In addition, this study focused on comparing the quantity of facial expressions across groups rather than their quality, timing, or social context. ConclusionsCommonly used automated facial analysis algorithms exhibit large variability in their output when identifying facial expressions of young children during naturalistic social interactions. Nonetheless, all three algorithms did not identify differences in the quantity of facial expressions across groups, suggesting that atypical production of facial expressions in verbal children with autism is likely related to their quality, timing, and social context rather than their quantity during natural social interaction.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2019

Children with autism observe social interactions in an idiosyncratic manner

Previous eye tracking studies have reported that children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) fixate less on faces in comparison to controls. To properly understand social interactions, however, children must gaze not only at faces, but also at actions, gestures, body movements, contextual details, and objects, thereby creating specific gaze patterns when observing specific interactions. We presented three different movies of social interactions to 111 children (71 with ASD) who watched each of the movies twice. Typically developing children viewed the movies in a remarkably predictable and reproducible manner, exhibiting gaze patterns that were similar to the mean gaze pattern of other controls, with strong correlations across individuals (inter-subject correlations) and across movie presentations (intra-subject correlations). In contrast, children with ASD exhibited significantly more variable/idiosyncratic gaze patterns that differed from the mean gaze pattern of controls and were weakly correlated across individuals and presentations. Most importantly, quantification of gaze idiosyncrasy in individual children, enabled separation of ASD and control children with higher sensitivity and specificity than traditional measures such as time gazing at faces. Individual magnitudes of gaze idiosyncrasy were also significantly correlated with ASD severity and significantly correlated across movies and movie presentations, demonstrating their clinical sensitivity and reliability. These results suggest that gaze idiosyncrasy is a potent behavioral abnormality that characterizes many children with ASD and may contribute to their impaired social development. Quantification of gaze idiosyncrasy in individual children may aid in assessing their ASD severity over time and in response to treatments.\n\nLay SummaryTypically developing children watch movies of social interactions in a reliable and predictable manner, attending faces, gestures, body movements, and objects that are relevant to the social interaction and its narrative. Here, we demonstrate that children with ASD watch such movies with significantly more variable/idiosyncratic gaze patterns that differ across individuals and across movie presentations. We demonstrate that quantifying this variability is a very potent way of identifying children with ASD and determining the severity of their social ASD symptoms.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2018

Sleep problems are associated with hypersensitivity to touch in children with autism

BackgroundSensory abnormalities and sleep disturbances are highly prevalent in children with autism, but the potential relationship between these two domains has rarely been explored. Understanding such relationships is important for identifying children with autism who exhibit more homogeneous symptoms.\n\nMethodsHere we examined this relationship using the Caregiver Sensory Profile and the childrens sleep habit questionnaires, which were completed by parents of 69 children with autism and 62 frequency age-matched controls.\n\nResultsIn line with previous studies, children with autism exhibited more severe sensory abnormalities and sleep disturbances than age-matched controls. The sleep disturbance scores were strongly associated with touch and oral sensitivities in the autism group and with touch and vestibular sensitivities in the control group. Hyper sensitivity towards touch, in particular, exhibited the strongest relationship with sleep disturbances in the autism group and single-handedly explained 24% of the variance in sleep disturbance scores. In contrast, sensitivity in other sensory domains such as vision and audition was not associated with sleep quality in either group.\n\nConclusionsWhile it is often assumed that sensitivities in all sensory domains are similarly associated with sleep problems, our results suggest that hyper sensitivity towards touch exhibits the strongest relationship to sleep disturbances when examining children autism. We speculate that hyper sensitivity towards touch interferes with sleep onset and maintenance in a considerable number of children with autism who exhibit severe sleep disturbances. Studies that examine the effects of tactile sensory therapies/aids on sleep quality and behavioral improvement in these children are, therefore, highly warranted.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2017

The Negev hospital-university-based (HUB) autism database

Elucidating the heterogeneous etiologies of autism will require investment in comprehensive longitudinal data acquisition from large community based cohorts. With this in mind, we have established a hospital-university-based (HUB) database of autism which incorporates prospective and retrospective data from a large and ethnically diverse population. Here we present initial findings from 188 children who were diagnosed with autism during the first eighteen months of the study. The unique characteristics of this cohort included: significant differences between Bedouin and Jewish children in different risk factors and clinical characteristics; complete birth records for >90% of the children; and a high frequency of consanguineous marriages. Thus, the Negev HUB autism database comprises a remarkably unique resource to study different aspects of autism.

epidemiology↗