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Glossary Of Terms
This glossary is designed to explain some of the jargon and gobbledygook used by some people when they talk about autism or research.
You may be able to find more information, including links to other parts of this website, by clicking on the title of an item.
If you can’t find the word you are looking for, or you know of a word we should include, please email info@researchautism.net
Disclaimer
The fact that an intervention is listed in this glossary does not necessarily mean that we agree with its use. Nor does it necessarily mean that there is any scientifically valid or reliable evidence behind it.
Over time we hope to evaluate each of the interventions listed in this glossary, providing a ranking which tells you the level of scientific evidence which supports or does not support its use. You can find details of the interventions we have already ranked in the List of interventions
- Glossary Item
- Description
- Observational Study
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A study in which the investigators do not seek to intervene, and simply observe the course of events
- Obsessive
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Obsessive thoughts are ideas, pictures of thoughts or impulses, which repeatedly enter the mind.
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
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Disorder where a person has recurrent unwanted ideas (obsessions) and an urge (compulsion) to do something to relieve the obsession.
- Occupational Therapy
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Therapy which aims to enable people to participate in daily activities as independently and satisfactorily as possible, using meaningful activities as a means to do this.
- OCD
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Acronym for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, a disorder where a person has recurrent unwanted ideas (obsessions) and an urge (compulsion) to do something to relieve the obsession.
- Ocular Light Therapy
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A form of lightwave stimulation in which an individual looks at coloured light produced by a special machine called a Lumatron or a Photron Light Stimulator.
- Oestrogen
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Oestrogen is a hormone which is used to treat a range of medical issues in women. Some people believe that it can also be used to treat hypersexual behaviour.
- Off-label
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Use of a drug for which the US Food and Drug Administration has not issued formal approval.
- Olanzapine
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Type of atypical anti-psychotic drug which is sometimes used to treat problem behaviours in people with autism spectrum disorders.
- Omega-3
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Polyunsaturated fatty acids obtained from some types of food, such as fish. Believed by some people to be helpful in preventing the symptoms of autism.
- One-to-One Training
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Sometimes used as another term for discrete trial training, a highly-structured training technique that involves a trainer instructing an individual with autism using a series of learning opportunities or ‘trials’.
- Online Communities
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Range of online groups – such as listservs, chatrooms, forums and websites – used by people with autism and others to talk to one another
- Open / Open Label Trial
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A clinical trial in which the investigators and participants are aware which intervention is being used for which participant i.e. the opposite of a blinded trial.
- Operant Conditioning
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Technique in which desired behaviours are systematically reinforced through rewards – such as praise or food – and undesired behaviours are ignored or redirected.
- Opioid
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Substance with action like that of opium or its derivatives.
- Opioid Antagonists
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Morphine-like substances which can be used to block the effect of endorphins in the central nervous system. Some people believe they can be used to reduce behaviours such as self injury, hyperactivity and ritualistic behaviour.
- Optimal Cell Support Glyconutrients
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Another term for glyconutrients, a form of monosaccharide sugars.
- Options Method or Program
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Sometimes used as another name for the Son-Rise Program, although it is actually a different programme run by the same company.
- Orap®
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Brand name for pimozide, a conventional anti-psychotic used to treat motor or verbal tics caused by Tourette’s disorder.
- Oregano
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Herb which is sometimes used as an anti-fungal treatment.
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Last Updated : 17/11/2008
