Scholars@Duke
Tara Chandrasekhar

Tara Chandrasekhar

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Psychiatry, Child & Family Mental Health & Community Psychiatry
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Selected Publications

Prevalence of bias against neurodivergence-related terms in artificial intelligence language models.

Journal Article Autism Res · February 2024 Given the increasing role of artificial intelligence (AI) in many decision-making processes, we investigate the presence of AI bias towards terms related to a range of neurodivergent conditions, including autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsi ... Full text Link to item Cite

Meeting the mental health needs of autistic college students: a survey of university and college counseling center clinicians.

Journal Article J Am Coll Health · January 2024 OBJECTIVE: University and college counseling centers (UCCCs) are a front-line support for the mental health needs of autistic students, though little is known about clinician attitudes, comfort level, and training in autism. PARTICIPANTS: 89 UCCC clinician ... Full text Link to item Cite

Developing an Inclusive Campus for Autistic Students

Journal Article Journal of Diversity in Higher Education · January 1, 2024 Autistic students in higher education are an often-overlooked group despite autism often being associated with unique perspectives and strengths such as honesty, thinking “out-of-the box”; a keen sense of right and wrong, and intense focus on favorite subj ... Full text Cite

Genetic and epigenetic signatures associated with plasma oxytocin levels in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder.

Journal Article Autism Res · March 2023 Oxytocin (OT), the brain's most abundant neuropeptide, plays an important role in social salience and motivation. Clinical trials of the efficacy of OT in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have reported mixed results due in part to ASD's complex etiology. We ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Pragmatic adaptations of telehealth-delivered caregiver coaching for children with autism in the context of COVID-19: Perspectives from the United States and South Africa.

Journal Article Autism · January 2022 COVID-19 caused many autism spectrum disorder caregiver-coaching studies to move to telehealth. Telehealth can increase the diversity of people who take part in research. This matters because most autism spectrum disorder studies have included people who h ... Full text Link to item Cite

Intranasal Oxytocin in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Journal Article N Engl J Med · October 14, 2021 BACKGROUND: Experimental studies and small clinical trials have suggested that treatment with intranasal oxytocin may reduce social impairment in persons with autism spectrum disorder. Oxytocin has been administered in clinical practice to many children wi ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

6.14 Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial With Open-Label Extension of Intranasal Oxytocin for Autism Spectrum Disorder

Journal Article Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · October 2021 Full text Cite

Meeting the Mental Health Needs of College Students with ASD: A Survey of University and College Counseling Center Directors.

Journal Article J Autism Dev Disord · January 2021 An increasing number of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are enrolling in post-secondary education. Though many students may use services provided by university and college counseling centers (UCCCs), little is known about the landscape of c ... Full text Link to item Cite

Rationale, design, and methods of the Autism Centers of Excellence (ACE) network Study of Oxytocin in Autism to improve Reciprocal Social Behaviors (SOARS-B).

Journal Article Contemp Clin Trials · November 2020 OBJECTIVE: To describe the rationale, design, and methods of the Autism Centers of Excellence (ACE) network Study of Oxytocin in Autism to improve Reciprocal Social Behaviors (SOARS-B). METHOD: This phase 2 clinical trial was designed to evaluate the use o ... Full text Link to item Cite

Metformin add-on vs. antipsychotic switch vs. continued antipsychotic treatment plus healthy lifestyle education in overweight or obese youth with severe mental illness: results from the IMPACT trial.

Journal Article World Psychiatry · February 2020 Antipsychotics are used for many psychiatric conditions in youth. Although developmentally inappropriate weight gain and metabolic abnormalities, which are risk factors for premature cardiovascular mortality, are especially frequent in youth, optimal strat ... Full text Link to item Cite

Autism, Psychosis, or Both? Unraveling Complex Patient Presentations.

Journal Article Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am · January 2020 Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and schizophrenia spectrum disorders co-occur at elevated rates. Although these conditions are diagnostically distinct, they share multiple clinical features and genetic risk factors. This article describes the epidemiologi ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Supporting the needs of college students with autism spectrum disorder.

Journal Article J Am Coll Health · 2020 Young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are enrolling in colleges at increasing rates. This case highlights the need for college mental health clinicians to be aware of features of ASD in emerging adults. Participants: A case of a young woman with ... Full text Link to item Cite

A Review of Methods for Monitoring Adverse Events in Pediatric Psychopharmacology Clinical Trials.

Journal Article Drug Saf · May 2018 Pediatric psychotropic prescription rates are rising, emphasizing the need for careful monitoring of drug safety in this population. Currently, no standardized assessments are used in clinical trials for adverse event (AE) elicitation focused on long-term ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

The effects of intranasal oxytocin on reward circuitry responses in children with autism spectrum disorder.

Journal Article J Neurodev Disord · March 27, 2018 BACKGROUND: Intranasal oxytocin (OT) has been shown to improve social communication functioning of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and, thus, has received considerable interest as a potential ASD therapeutic agent. Although preclinical rese ... Full text Link to item Cite

ASD: Challenges During Adolescence

Chapter · March 2, 2018 Cite

Depressogenic Conditions

Chapter · February 13, 2018 The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders is aimed at students interested in psychology, counseling, education, social work, psychiatry, health sciences, and more. ... Full text Cite

Testing for Prenatal Birth Defects

Chapter · February 13, 2018 The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders is aimed at students interested in psychology, counseling, education, social work, psychiatry, health sciences, and more. ... Full text Cite

Psychopharmacologic Interventions

Chapter · February 13, 2018 The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders is aimed at students interested in psychology, counseling, education, social work, psychiatry, health sciences, and more. ... Full text Cite

Early-Onset Psychotic Disorders

Chapter · May 24, 2017 50th Anniversary Edition The cornerstone text in the field for 50 years, Kaplan & Sadock's Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry has consistently kept pace with the rapid growth of research and knowledge in neural science, as well as ... ... Cite

Prevalence of bias against neurodivergence-related terms in artificial intelligence language models.

Journal Article Autism Res · February 2024 Given the increasing role of artificial intelligence (AI) in many decision-making processes, we investigate the presence of AI bias towards terms related to a range of neurodivergent conditions, including autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsi ... Full text Link to item Cite

Meeting the mental health needs of autistic college students: a survey of university and college counseling center clinicians.

Journal Article J Am Coll Health · January 2024 OBJECTIVE: University and college counseling centers (UCCCs) are a front-line support for the mental health needs of autistic students, though little is known about clinician attitudes, comfort level, and training in autism. PARTICIPANTS: 89 UCCC clinician ... Full text Link to item Cite

Developing an Inclusive Campus for Autistic Students

Journal Article Journal of Diversity in Higher Education · January 1, 2024 Autistic students in higher education are an often-overlooked group despite autism often being associated with unique perspectives and strengths such as honesty, thinking “out-of-the box”; a keen sense of right and wrong, and intense focus on favorite subj ... Full text Cite

Genetic and epigenetic signatures associated with plasma oxytocin levels in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder.

Journal Article Autism Res · March 2023 Oxytocin (OT), the brain's most abundant neuropeptide, plays an important role in social salience and motivation. Clinical trials of the efficacy of OT in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have reported mixed results due in part to ASD's complex etiology. We ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Pragmatic adaptations of telehealth-delivered caregiver coaching for children with autism in the context of COVID-19: Perspectives from the United States and South Africa.

Journal Article Autism · January 2022 COVID-19 caused many autism spectrum disorder caregiver-coaching studies to move to telehealth. Telehealth can increase the diversity of people who take part in research. This matters because most autism spectrum disorder studies have included people who h ... Full text Link to item Cite

Intranasal Oxytocin in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Journal Article N Engl J Med · October 14, 2021 BACKGROUND: Experimental studies and small clinical trials have suggested that treatment with intranasal oxytocin may reduce social impairment in persons with autism spectrum disorder. Oxytocin has been administered in clinical practice to many children wi ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

6.14 Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial With Open-Label Extension of Intranasal Oxytocin for Autism Spectrum Disorder

Journal Article Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · October 2021 Full text Cite

Meeting the Mental Health Needs of College Students with ASD: A Survey of University and College Counseling Center Directors.

Journal Article J Autism Dev Disord · January 2021 An increasing number of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are enrolling in post-secondary education. Though many students may use services provided by university and college counseling centers (UCCCs), little is known about the landscape of c ... Full text Link to item Cite

Rationale, design, and methods of the Autism Centers of Excellence (ACE) network Study of Oxytocin in Autism to improve Reciprocal Social Behaviors (SOARS-B).

Journal Article Contemp Clin Trials · November 2020 OBJECTIVE: To describe the rationale, design, and methods of the Autism Centers of Excellence (ACE) network Study of Oxytocin in Autism to improve Reciprocal Social Behaviors (SOARS-B). METHOD: This phase 2 clinical trial was designed to evaluate the use o ... Full text Link to item Cite

Metformin add-on vs. antipsychotic switch vs. continued antipsychotic treatment plus healthy lifestyle education in overweight or obese youth with severe mental illness: results from the IMPACT trial.

Journal Article World Psychiatry · February 2020 Antipsychotics are used for many psychiatric conditions in youth. Although developmentally inappropriate weight gain and metabolic abnormalities, which are risk factors for premature cardiovascular mortality, are especially frequent in youth, optimal strat ... Full text Link to item Cite

Autism, Psychosis, or Both? Unraveling Complex Patient Presentations.

Journal Article Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am · January 2020 Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and schizophrenia spectrum disorders co-occur at elevated rates. Although these conditions are diagnostically distinct, they share multiple clinical features and genetic risk factors. This article describes the epidemiologi ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Supporting the needs of college students with autism spectrum disorder.

Journal Article J Am Coll Health · 2020 Young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are enrolling in colleges at increasing rates. This case highlights the need for college mental health clinicians to be aware of features of ASD in emerging adults. Participants: A case of a young woman with ... Full text Link to item Cite

A Review of Methods for Monitoring Adverse Events in Pediatric Psychopharmacology Clinical Trials.

Journal Article Drug Saf · May 2018 Pediatric psychotropic prescription rates are rising, emphasizing the need for careful monitoring of drug safety in this population. Currently, no standardized assessments are used in clinical trials for adverse event (AE) elicitation focused on long-term ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

The effects of intranasal oxytocin on reward circuitry responses in children with autism spectrum disorder.

Journal Article J Neurodev Disord · March 27, 2018 BACKGROUND: Intranasal oxytocin (OT) has been shown to improve social communication functioning of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and, thus, has received considerable interest as a potential ASD therapeutic agent. Although preclinical rese ... Full text Link to item Cite

ASD: Challenges During Adolescence

Chapter · March 2, 2018 Cite

Depressogenic Conditions

Chapter · February 13, 2018 The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders is aimed at students interested in psychology, counseling, education, social work, psychiatry, health sciences, and more. ... Full text Cite

Testing for Prenatal Birth Defects

Chapter · February 13, 2018 The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders is aimed at students interested in psychology, counseling, education, social work, psychiatry, health sciences, and more. ... Full text Cite

Psychopharmacologic Interventions

Chapter · February 13, 2018 The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders is aimed at students interested in psychology, counseling, education, social work, psychiatry, health sciences, and more. ... Full text Cite

Early-Onset Psychotic Disorders

Chapter · May 24, 2017 50th Anniversary Edition The cornerstone text in the field for 50 years, Kaplan & Sadock's Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry has consistently kept pace with the rapid growth of research and knowledge in neural science, as well as ... ... Cite

Diagnosing and Treating Children and Adolescents A Guide for Mental Health Professionals

Chapter · September 11, 2015 With in-depth content broken into two sections, this book first provides a foundation in the diagnostic process by covering the underlying principles of diagnosis and treatment planning, and then applies this framework to the DSM-5 ... ... Cite

Challenges in the diagnosis and treatment of depression in autism spectrum disorders across the lifespan.

Journal Article Dialogues Clin Neurosci · June 2015 Diagnosis and treatment of comorbid neuropsychiatric illness is often a secondary focus of treatment in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), given that substantial impairment may be caused by core symptoms of ASD itself. However, psychiatric co ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

6.21 UNIVERSITY COUNSELING CENTER CLINICIANS' EXPERIENCE WITH AND ATTITUDES TOWARD STUDENTS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER: A BRIEF SURVEY

Conference Supplement to the Journal of American Academy or Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Objectives: A growing number of young adults with autism spectrum disor- der (ASD) are entering higher education. Studies suggest that they experience high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal behavior. University and college counseling centers (UCCC ... Full text Link to item Cite