So yesterday, C. received 10 mg. of the beta blocker Propranolol, and today 20. We go up by 10 mg. every day until we hit 40 mg. That was the dose given to the subjects [here] with high-functioning autism who showed dramatic improvement in communication and cognitive skills immediately afterwards.
"Propranolol was first reported to improve the language and sociability skills of individuals with autism in 1987,” says senior author and neurologist David Beversdorf. But the effect was never verified with a controlled trial comparing propranolol with a placebo."This drug has been used for decades by performers to ease anxiety and shakiness - but apparently they kept it their own little secret.
The latest study published this month in the journal Psychopharmacology was small but carefully conducted at the University of Missouri's Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders..
The enhanced skills were: staying on topic, sharing information, reciprocity or shared conversation, transitions or interruptions, nonverbal communication and maintaining eye contact.
