Little Foundation
Founded | 1990 |
---|---|
Type | Registered charity No. 803551 |
Focus | Understanding the underlying causes of brain disorders and thereby develop means of preventing them |
Location | |
Area served | International |
Method | Research funding, Public policy, and Education. |
Key people |
Lord Walton of Detchant, Patron Lord Hameed, of Hampstead, Chairman and Major Christopher Robinson, President |
Website | www.thelittlefoundation.org.uk |
The Little Foundation is a London-based charity operating internationally.
Named in honour of William Little, the English surgeon who described what became known as 'Little's disease', a spastic paralysis of both lower limbs which then became known as infantile cerebral palsy. The charity, founded in 1990 by the late Ian Dawson-Shepherd,[1] initially focused on funding research[2][3][4] into the causes of cerebral palsy but now has broader objectives seeking to fund research into not only the causes[5] and prevention[6][7] of cerebral palsy but also allied disorders which include autism, dyslexia, epilepsy, deafness and blindness, learning difficulties, and other forms of neurodevelopmental disorder.[8]
On 4 November 2009, Lord Hameed, the charity's president, tabled a motion in the House of Lords asking the Government what measures have been taken to prevent cerebral palsy which now costs the NHS £4 billion every year.[9][10] The total annual cost of brain disorders (covering 19 groups of disorders) has been estimated to be €798 billion for the EU alone.[11]
Research
The charity's most recent research projects include:
- Autism spectrum disorder in children with and without epilepsy[12]
- Defining and classifying cerebral palsy[13]
- Clinical and MRI correlates of cerebral palsy[14]
See also
References
- ↑ Hargreaves, William (19 January 1996). "Obituary: Ian Dawson-Shepherd". The Independent. London. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
- ↑ "Brain project; Funded by the Little Foundation." The Times [London, England] 22 Nov. 1990
- ↑ "Research on handicaps; Letter." The Times [London, England] 30 Aug. 1991
- ↑ "Baby brain damage research launched." The Times [London, England] 30 Jan. 1992: p.5
- ↑ Hack M., Flannery D.J., Schluchter M., Cartar L., Borawski E., Klein N.(2002) 'Outcomes in young adulthood for very-low-birth-weight infants'. N. Engl. J. Med. 346 (3): 149-57.
- ↑ Czeizel A.E.(2009) 'Periconceptional folic acid and multivitamin supplementation for the prevention of neural tube defects and other congenital abnormalities.' Birth Defects Res. A Clin. Mol. Teratol. 85 (4): 260-8.
- ↑ Brough L., Rees G.A., Crawford M.A., Morton R.H. and Dorman E.K.(2010) 'Effect of multiple-micronutrient supplementation on maternal nutrient status and infant birth weight and gestational age at birth in a low income, multi-ethnic population.' B. J. Nutr., 23 April: 1-9.
- ↑ 'The potential role for arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids in protection against some central nervous system injuries in preterm infants' M. A. Crawford, I. Golfetto, K. Ghebremeskel, Y. Min, T. Moodley, L. Poston, A. Phylactos, S. Cunnane and W. Schmidt. Lipids 2003. Vol.38,Iss.4;p.303-315
- ↑ http://www.salfordonline.com/disability.php?func=viewdetails&vdetails=16449
- ↑ http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldhansrd/text/91104-gc0003.htm#091104114000035
- ↑ http://www.europeanbraincouncil.org/pdfs/Publications_/Cost%20of%20Disorders%20of%20the%20Brain%20in%20Europe%20-%20EurNeuro2011.pdf 'Cost of Disorders of the Brain in Europe' European Neuropsychopharmacology (2011) 21, 718–779
- ↑ Turk J, Bax M, Williams C, Amin P, Eriksson M, Gillberg C (April 2009). "Autism spectrum disorder in children with and without epilepsy: impact on social functioning and communication". Acta Paediatrica. 98 (4): 675–81. doi:10.1111/j.1651-2227.2008.01184.x. PMID 19173683.
- ↑ Rosenbaum P, Paneth N, Leviton A, et al. (February 2007). "A report: the definition and classification of cerebral palsy April 2006". Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology. 49 (S109): 8–14. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8749.2007.tb12610.x. PMID 17370477.
- ↑ Bax M, Tydeman C, Flodmark O (October 2006). "Clinical and MRI correlates of cerebral palsy: the European Cerebral Palsy Study". JAMA. 296 (13): 1602–8. doi:10.1001/jama.296.13.1602. PMID 17018805.
External links
- Official website
- Charity Commission. The Little Foundation, registered charity no. 803551.
- Association of Medical Research Charities