Dr. Peter Szatmari

The child-sized, well-worn, red rocking chair is an integral part of Dr. Peter Szatmari’s office. The world-renowned researcher at McMaster University sees the chair – which he bought many years ago at a flea market because it looked lonely - as a concrete reminder of the ultimate purpose of his work as a researcher, clinician and teacher: Helping children with serious psychiatric disorders and their families.

That work is extensive.

In addition to being the holder of the only endowed Canadian chair in child psychiatry, Dr. Szatmari is a professor, vice-chair of research and head of the division of child psychiatry at McMaster, as well as acting director of the Offord Centre for Child Studies.

He is an expert in the study of autism and pervasive developmental disorders, and his prodigious research projects continue to expand his knowledge and influence in the field of child psychiatry.

A quest to discover the neurochemical and environmental pathways that lead to psychiatric disorders is at the core of Dr. Szatmari’s research.

“Everybody thinks they know what’s wrong with kids today,” he said. “What they don’t recognize is that there is a need for science and knowledge to understand kids.”

As holder of the Chedoke Health Chair in Child Psychiatry, Dr. Szatmari is pursuing that science and knowledge as he continues his life’s work examining autism and other severe psychiatric conditions in children.

He is currently co-leading an international study involving an American parent support group and both the U.S. and Canadian governments, to find the genes that cause autism. Launched early in 2004, it is one of the largest human disease studies ever planned.

“It will help us figure out the genes that cause autism and the biochemical pathways that have gone wrong,” explained Dr. Szatmari.

His other research projects include:

• following a group of children with autism and Asperger Syndrome since they were four years old (they are now almost 20), and discovering that serious anxiety and mood disorders start to surface as they get older, interfering with their development and quality of life;
• with colleagues at McMaster and Dalhousie universities, following the infant siblings of children with autism, who are at risk of developing the disorder, with the goal of improving early screening methods and diagnosis;
• conducting a longitudinal study of young children with Asperger Syndrome and autism to chart the development of their skills and abilities over time.

Another significant research project is set to get underway early in 2005. With a $2.1-million grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Dr. Szatmari will be co-leader of a study to determine what factors influence how well children with autism do as they age.

He will lead a team of medical investigators in Hamilton, Montreal and Halifax to study 400 children with autism spectrum disorders from the time they are diagnosed until they enter Grade 1. The team will assess the children four times, to chart their rate of improvement in social and communication skills. The findings will be used to guide the development of new programs and interventions for autistic children, and ultimately lead to a better quality of life.

“The study is very exciting because it involves research that addresses the real needs of children with autism spectrum disorders and their families at a crucial time in their life,” said Dr. Szatmari, a McMaster University alumni.

He completed his undergraduate science and medical degrees at McMaster, and received residency training at both McMaster and the University of Manchester in England. He has been a professor at McMaster since 1983.

Since 1981 he has worked at the Child and Family center at Chedoke, part of Hamilton Health Sciences, and he is a founding member of the Canadian Autism Intervention Research Network (CAIRN), a group of parents, clinicians and scientists attempting to develop a research agenda in early intervention of autism.

For further information, please contact Dr. Peter Szatmari using the Email contact form or by phone at 905 521-2100 ext 7367