Biography

Susan L. Hyman, MD, FAAP practices Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at the Golisano Children's Hospital of the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY. She is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Division Chief of Neurodevelopmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.  In addition to clinical assessment and management of children and youth with autism and other developmental disabilities, Dr. Hyman teaches medical students, residents, Fellows and other professional trainees and maintains an active research program focused on medical comorbidities of autism, interventions for autism, and diet and nutrition of children with autism. She is co-PI of the Rochester site of the Autism Treatment Network. In addition, she is the chair of the Autism Subcommittee of the American Academy of Pediatrics.  As such she advises the AAP Committee on Children with Disabilities and is responsible for the revised version of the AAP Toolkit on Autism for pediatric health care providers.

Research or other Professional Activities

Susan L. Hyman, MD, FAAP is a Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrician and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Golisano Children's Hospital of the University of Rochester Medical Center. Her research interests include:

• Medical Management and Comorbidities of Children with Autism: Dr. Hyman is co-Principal Investigator with Tristram Smith, PhD of the Rochester site of the Autism Treatment Network (ATN). This is a multisite consortium funded through Autism Speaks and HRSA to establish a standard of care in medical settings for children and youth with autism spectrum disorders with a focus on developing an evidence base for medical care and quality improvement mechanisms for implementation in both tertiary and primary care. Target areas of interest include sleep, gastrointestinal, and psychopharmacologic management and parent participation through decision aids.  An important component to the ATN is the generalization of management to the Medical Home.
• Medical Comorbidities: She completed a study funded by AUCD/CDC examining the comorbidity of autism and Down syndrome in children in NY State. This data set allowed for analysis of the screening and diagnostic measures used for autism in children with intellectual disabilities.
• Diet and Nutrition in Children with Autism: Dr. Hyman completed a double blind, placebo controlled challenge study examining the effects of gluten and casein on behavior of children with autism funded by the NIMH STAART program. She is currently leading a multisite ATN/HRSA study examining the nutritional status of children with autism, the relationship of nutrition with specific behaviors and biologic measures of iron and vitamin D status, and behaviors related to feeding.  She is collaborating on a study of taste and smell in youth with autism and their family members (PI, Bennetto, NIDCD).
• Interventions for Symptoms of Autism: In collaboration with Dr. Smith, Dr. Hyman is participating in a pharmacologic trial examining the response to atomoxetine with/without a behavioral intervention (NIMH).

Representative Publications

Buie T, Campbell DB, Fuchs GJ 3^rd, Furuta GT, Levy J, Vandewater J, Whitaker AH, Atkins D, Bauman  ML, Beaudet AL, Carr EG, Gershon MD, Hyman SL, Jirapinyo P, Jyonouchi H, Kooros, K, Kushak R,  Levitt P, Levy SE, Lewis JD, Murray KF, Natowicz MR, Sabra A, Wershil BK, Weston SC, Zeltzer L, Winter H (2010) Evaluation, diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal disorders in individuals with ASDs: a consensus report. Pediatrics. Suppl1:S1-18 PMID 2004808

Levy SE and Hyman SL, (2008) Complementary and Alternative Therapies for Autism. Clinics of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry of North America.17(4):803-820. PMID 18775371

Autism Toolkit (2007) American Academy of Pediatrics (Co-chair of Autism Advisory Committee, editor and contributing author)

Gupta VB, Hyman SL, Johnson CP, Bryant J, Byers B, Kallen R, Levy SE, Myers SM, Rosenblatt AI, Yeargin-Allsopp M.(2007) Identifying children with autism early? Pediatrics. Jan;119(1):152-3

Bennetto L, Kuschner ES, & Hyman SL. (2007).  Olfaction and taste processing in autism. Biological Psychiatry 62:1015-1021. PMID 17572391