One-minute video game 80% successful in diagnosing autism; more than 60% of cannabis users exhibited reduced brain activity; KBWB-Atrium and former CEO plead guilty to health care fraud and tax conspiracy – Morning Medical Update

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One-minute video game 80% successful in diagnosing autism

A one-minute video game can accurately distinguish children with autism from those who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or are neurotypical. Using a motion-tracking tool called the Computerized Assessment of Motor Imitation (CAMI)—which was developed by researchers at Kennedy Krieger Institute and Nottingham Trent University—the video game is able to detect differences in motor imitation skills of children, ages 7-13, as they attempt to copy dance-like movements of an on-screen avatar for one minute.

The tool was able to identify children with autism vs. neurotypical children with an 80% success rate and was able to differentiate autism from ADHD with 70% accuracy. “Diagnosing autism can be challenging, especially when children have overlapping traits with other conditions like ADHD. If the condition is misdiagnosed, it can impact support and resources for the child,” said Steward Mostofsky, MD, co-author of the study.

More than 60% of cannabis users exhibited reduced brain activity during a working memory task

A new study, the largest of its kind ever to be completed, examined the effects of both recent and lifetime cannabis use on brain function during cognitive tasks, and found that 63% of heavy lifetime cannabis users exhibited reduced brain activity during a working memory task and 68% of recent cannabis users demonstrated a similar impact. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network Open, determined that the decline in brain activity was associated with worse performance on working memory.

“As cannabis use continues to grow globally, studying its effects on human health has become increasingly important,” Joshua Gowin, PhD, the study’s first author and an assistant professor of radiology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, said in a release.

KBWB-Atrium Health and former CEO plead guilty to health care fraud and tax conspiracy

The U.S. Department of Justice announced that KBWB Operations LLC., which did business as Atrium Health and Senior Living, and Kevin Breslin, former CEO and managing member of KBWB-Atrium, have both pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud and one count of tax conspiracy, for which they were charged in February 2023.

From January 2015 to September 2018, KBWB-Atrium, owned and operated 23 skilled nursing facilities in Wisconsin, which Breslin was responsible for overseeing. The primary source of income for the nursing facilities was federal Medicare and Medicaid funding from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), funding which the defendants allegedly diverted for other purposes and personal experiences, guaranteeing payments to KBWB-Atrium’s owners regardless of the company’s financial situation.