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What: D.R.E.A.M. (Down syndrome research, education, advocacy in Montana) was started as a local support group for families of children with Down syndrome. The goal of D.R.E.A.M. is to provide financial grants to families in need of medical, educational and therapeutic assistance. It also helps to provide and distribute "New Parent Packets" to families with infants diagnosed with Down syndrome. The Bozeman Buddy Walk is the primary fundraiser for D.R.E.A.M. and a portion of the money raised will also go to the National Down Syndrome Society. The Buddy Walk® was established in 1995 by the National Down Syndrome Society to celebrate Down syndrome Awareness Month in October and to promote acceptance and inclusion of people with Down syndrome. When: September 24, 2011 Registration begins at 10 AM.. The walk begins at 11 AM and will be followed by a complimentary lunch donated by many local businesses.  Contact: For more information, contact Ryan Robinson at dreambuddywalk@gmail.com

Jessica Green dares to dream.

Sharing her dreams and hopes for herself and others with Down syndrome in a recent speech helped Green win a seat on the board of directors of the National Down Syndrome Congress. triggerAd(1,PaginationPage,11); In her "Dare to Dream" speech, given at a congress event in Sacramento, Calif., the 26-year-old Indianapolis woman talked about her abilities and how people with Down syndrome should "stand up for themselves."

Sharing her dreams and hopes for herself and others with Down syndrome in a recent speech helped Green win a seat on the board of directors of the National Down Syndrome Congress.

March 21st marks World Down Syndrome Day on the Special Needs Calendar. World Down Syndrome Day is a global awareness day which has been officially observed by the United Nations since 2012. The day is is focused on raising awareness for individuals with Down Syndrome. In preperation for World Down Syndrome Awareness Day we gathered together 42 Down Syndrome resources.

This past Wednesday, March 21 was World Down Syndrome Day. Down syndrome organizations throughout the world organized and participated in events to raise public awareness of Down syndrome.

Down syndrome, more commonly known as "trisomy 21" is very often accompanied by pathologies found in the general population: Alzheimer's disease, leukemia, or cardiac deficiency. In a study conducted by Professor Stylianos Antonarakis' group from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Geneva (UNIGE), researchers have identified the genomic variations associated with trisomy 21, determining the risk of congenital heart disease in people with Down syndrome. The targeted and specific study of chromosome 21 revealed two genomic variations, which, in combination, are the hallmark of hereditary cardiac deficiency. These results are being published in the journal Genome Research and add to other research conducted by the same team about chronic myeloid leukemia, a severe form of leukemia that often affects people with Down syndrome. The journal Blood is publishing these advances in the understanding of a disease which, like hereditary cardiac deficiencies or early Alzheimer's, affects the general population.

Down Syndrome International (DSI) has officially earmarked 21 March as World Down Syndrome Day (WDSD). The date was chosen to signify the uniqueness of Down syndrome in the triplication (trisomy) of the 21st chromosome and is used synonymously with Down syndrome. Commemoration of World Down Syndrome Day started on 21 March 2006, it has " grown " manifold globally.

On Saturday September 11 the local non-profit group D.R.E.A.M. (Down syndrome research, education and advocacy in Montana) will hold its 1st annual Buddy Walk in Bozeman. The walk is a 1-mile loop around the Gallatin Regional  Park which is located off of Oak Street and right down the street from the Dinosaur Playground. The event is the main fundraiser for D.R.E.A.M. and a portion of the funds raised goes to the National Down syndrome Society.

The Brain Balance Achievement Center, a franchise that opened in Mequon last summer, offers a program that it contends can help children overcome attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, Asperger's syndrome, Tourette syndrome, autism and other disorders. The 12-week program - costing $6,000, plus roughly $125 to $500 in nutritional supplements - purportedly does this by addressing an imbalance between the right and left sides of the brain that it calls "functional disconnection syndrome." The program is based on the contention that ADHD, dyslexia, autism and other disorders all result from this syndrome. "That functional disconnection syndrome basically states in the literature that the two sides of the brain are not communicating effectively together due to the fact that one side of the brain is actually maturing at a faster rate than the other side," said Jeremy Fritz, a chiropractor and co-owner of the franchise. The "literature" consists of one study of children with ADHD, co-authored by the program's founder, published in an obscure journal based in Tel Aviv, Israel. There are no studies in respected, peer-reviewed journals that contend ADHD, dyslexia, autism and other disorders stem from the development of one side of the brain faster than the other. "None of the neuro research would even come close to suggesting that," said Mina Dulcan, a professor at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and the head of the child and adolescent psychiatry program at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

We are a diverse group of parents in the Gallatin Valley and surrounding areas with young children with Down syndrome. Initially, we connected to celebrate the joys and concerns that come with having a child with Down syndrome. Since then we have all realized the importance of having a network of friends and resources and wanted to reach out to others who may be in our same situation. We like to meet once a month to get our kids together to play and to visit with each other about Down syndrome specific topics.

The local nonprofit D.R.E.A.M. (Down syndrome Research, Education and Advocacy in Montana) is pleased to announce the start of a new grant program to help people with Down syndrome and their families. D.R.E.A.M. was the vision of a few parents with children diagnosed with Down syndrome recognizing the need for a local support system. The success of the 1st annual Bozeman Buddy Walk held in September allowed D.R.E.A.M. to grow from a group that organized monthly support meetings into a nonprofit charity. Thanks to the wonderful community support at the Buddy Walk we are offering grants to families and individuals struggling with medical, therapy and equipment expenses associated with Down syndrome. Grant money will be available three times per year with deadlines for applications due January 5, May 5 and November 5. For more information and to apply for funding please visit the D.R.E.A.M. website at www.dream-mt.org or contact Julie Kleine at jkleine200@yahoo.com or 599-2556.

Rudy Simone says, "Just 'cause you have Asperger's doesn't mean you know what that means until somebody tells you."And it took well-known Simone 40 years to have someone tell her she too suffered from Asperger's syndrome. A condition on the autism spectrum, Asperger's is more commonly found in males and often affects social interactions.

What:Is Asperger's syndrome really less common in girls and women, or are females just better than males at masking autistic symptoms? Rudy Simone, a San Francisco singer, writer and stand-up comic, didn't learn that she was on the autism spectrum until her mid-40s. Simone has Asperger's syndrome - a high-functioning form of autism that leads to social problems but no intellectual disabilities - which, like all forms of autism, appear much more commonly in boys than in girls. Ten times more men are believed to reside on the spectrum than women. But some experts think the real prevalence of Asperger's in girls may be much higher than believed, because girls tend to be far better than boys at concealing its symptoms, masking social problems and hiding the repetitive behaviors often associated with autism. So, many women go undiagnosed until middle age, along the way given other labels and therapies that do not address their real issues. To help make up for the lack of resources available to girls with Asperger's and their families, Simone wrote Aspergirls: Empowering Females with Asperger's Syndrome. Healthland spoke with her recently. Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2011/12/27/mind-reading-a-qa-with-the-author-of-aspergirls/#ixzz1hl7AHuDt Ms. Simone will be speaking in Montana this spring. More details will be provided in mid-March. All of her appearances will free and open to the public. Where and When:Billings (CEC Conference) - April 25, 2012Helena - April 26, 2012 Missoula - April 27, 2012Kalispell - April 28, 2012Contact: Doug Doty, Coordinator Website: www.opi.mt.gov/autism/maep Phone: (406) 444-0907

May 21, 2010 — Results from a new randomized trial show that children with Tourette's syndrome and chronic tic disorders have greater improvement in tics and tic-related impairment with comprehensive behavioral intervention than with supportive therapy and education. "Historically, Tourette's syndrome has been treated with antipsychotic medications, which reduce tics but are associated with side effects that often limit their usefulness in children," lead author John Piacentini, PhD, from the University of California, Los Angeles, said in a statement. "So the development of an effective nonmedication treatment for children with this disorder is a major therapeutic advance."

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Facts, diagnosis, treatment, questions and answers, data and statistics, research, screening tools, training and education resources, and free materials for consumers and health professionals. Includes materials in Spanish and Russian. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Diagnostic & Prevention Network Screening, diagnostic, surveillance, intervention, prevention, and training tools for health professionals, social service providers, and researchers. Includes diagnostic software, instructions on using a four-digit diagnostic code, and photographs to use in diagnosis. Medline Plus: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Information for consumers including overviews, news, research tools, reference material, and links to additional information sources. National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS) An online information packet, electronic newsletters, public service announcements, a national and state-by-state resource directory, a list of NOFAS state affiliates, and tools for educators, including a school-based FASD education and prevention curriculum http://www.nofas.org/about/K-12Curriculum.htm> developed in partnership with CDC. PubMed Over 18 million citations and abstracts from MEDLINE and other life science journals for biomedical articles indexed by the National Library of Medicine back to the 1950s, with links to full text articles when available. Search tips: Enter the term “fetal alcohol syndrome” or the term “fetal alcohol spectrum” in the Search box. Click the Limits tab, and choose the box for Humans and the box for English (or other desired language). Limit the search by date to retrieve only more recent items. SAMHSA Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Center for Excellence Downloadable fact sheets and brochures, links to state resources and legislations, model programs, a publications database, and training courses. University of Wisconsin, Madison: Pregnancy and Alcohol Information on alcohol and pregnancy and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, including fact sheets, self-help guides, research findings, and answers to frequently asked questions. Expert advice offered via e-mail or toll-free information line (800) 752-3157.