Assistant Professor Ronda DeMattei, R.D.H., M.S.Ed., in the Dental Hygiene Program and Professor Anthony Cuvo, Ph.D., SIUC Rehabilitation Institute and Director of the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders at SIUC, were awarded $12,608 by The Autism Project to conduct research on the oral health needs of children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Fifty-seven children from The Hope School in Springfield, Illinois, The Center for Autism Spectrum Disorder at SIUC and The School for the Hearing Impaired in Marion, Illinois, have participated in the study.

Professors DeMattei and Cuvo subsequently were awarded a renewal of the grant in the amount of $34,839. The goals of the continuing project are 1) to continue collecting data on the oral health needs and oral defensiveness of this population; 2) to conduct single-subject trials, and 3) to increase the SIUC Dental Hygiene Students' knowledge and skills for providing oral care services to children with an ASD.