[Archive 2009-09-30] Court revelation by John Travolta of son's disease sparks autism debate

Historical archive — originally published 2009-09-30. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

A recent revelation by American actor John Travolta in court testimony during an ongoing extortion case in The Bahamas that his late son Jett suffered from autism, has stirred debate and controversy over the disease. News media and critics have questioned whether Travolta and his wife Kelly Preston should have acknowledged Jett's illness sooner. In response to comments made Tuesday about the recent events on the ABC television program The View, the National Autism Association issued a press release stating they "very much support the Travolta family and all families affected by autism".

Cleveland, Ohio-based University Hospitals Case Medical Center child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Marcie Hall said that according to studies one fourth of autistic children may concurrently have seizure disorder. The director of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Management Center at New York City's Montefiore Medical Center, Dr. Shlomo Shinnar, stated: "In neurologically-normal children with epilepsy, the risk of death is actually no different than for children without seizures."

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