Rob Nicolson M.D., F.R.C.P.(C.)

Associate Professor

Psychiatrist

 

 

 Med School: University of Western Ontario
Residency: University of Toronto
Clinical area of expertise: Autism, Intellectual Disability
Phone: 519.685.8427
Administrative Partner: Judy McLarty
519.685.8427
Developmental Disabilities Website:

https://www.schulich.uwo.ca/ddp/

Profile

Dr. Nicolson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Chair of the Developmental Disabilities Program at Western University. Dr. Nicolson completed medical school at Western University before moving to The University of Toronto to do his residency in psychiatry. He worked as a visiting scientist in the Child Psychiatry Branch of the National Institute of Mental Health in the United States before returning to London.

Dr. Nicolson’s research is devoted to the understanding and treatment of children and adolescents with neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability. He has authored or co-authored 100 journal articles and has presented more than 180 abstracts at scientific conferences. As an investigator or co-investigator, he has held grants totaling almost $35 million.

Dr. Nicolson is a child psychiatrist whose practice is largely devoted to children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability. He is a psychiatrist in the Neurodevelopmental Disorders Program at Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre and in the Autism Spectrum Disorder program at the Child and Parent Resource Institute (CPRI) in London.

Publications

  1. Vibert B, Segura P, Gallagher L, Georgiades S, Pervanidou P, Thurm A, Alexander L, Anagnostou E, Aoki Y, Birken CSN, Bishop SL, Boi J, Bravaccio C, Brentani H, Canevini P, Carta A, Charach A, Costantino A, Cost KT, Andrade Cravo E, Crosbie J, Davico C, Gabellone A, Donno F, Fujino J, Tezzari Geyer C, Hirota T, Kanne S, Kawashima M, Kelley E, Kim H, Shin Kim Y, Kim SH, Korczak DJ, Lai MC, Margari L, Masi G, Marzulli L, Mazzone L, McGrath J, Monga S, Morosini P, Nakajima S, Narzisi A, Nicolson R, Nikolaidis A, Noda Y, Nowell K, Polizzi M, Portolese J, Riccio MP, Saito M, Simhal AK, Siracusano M, Sotgiu S, Stroud J, Sumiya F, Schwartz I, Tachibana Y, Takahashi N, Takahashi R, Tamon H, Tancredi R, Vitiello B, Zuddas A, Leventhal B, Merikangas K, Milham MP, Di Martino A. CRISIS AFAR: An International Collaborative Study of the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mental Health and Service Access in Youth with Autism and Neurodevelopmental Conditions. Molecular Autism 2023;14:7

  2. Schulz S, Kelley E, Anagnostou E, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Crosbie J, Schachar R, Ayub M, Stevenson R. Sensory Processing Patterns Predict Problem Behaviours in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders 2023;7:46-58

  3. O’Flanagan S, Nicolson R. Survey Results on Training in Developmental Disabilities in Canadian Psychiatry Residency Programs. Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 2023; 32:4-9

  4. Tsujimoto KC, Cost KT, LaForge-MacKenzie K, Anagnostou E, Birken CS, Charach A, Monga S, Kelley E, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Lee N, Osokin K, Burton C, Crosbie J, Korczak DJ. Disruption to Education During COVID-19: School Nonacademic Factors Are Associated with Children’s Mental Health. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics 2023;44:e95-e103

  5. Schachar RJ, Dupuis A, Arnold PD, Anagnostou E, Kelley E, Georgiades S, Nicolson R, Townes P, Burton C, Crosbie J. Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Shared or Unique Neurocognitive Profiles? Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology 2023;51:17-31

  6. Krakowski AD, Cost KT, Szatmari P, Anagnostou E, Crosbie J, Schachar R, Duku E, Georgiades S, Ayub M, Kelley E, Nicolson R, Pullenayegum E, Barnett-Tapia C. Characterizing the ASD-ADHD phenotype: measurement structure and invariance in a clinical sample. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 2022;63:1534-1543

  7. Seguin D, Pac S, Wang J, Nicolson R, Martinez-Trujillo J, Anagnostou E, Lerch JP, Hammill C, Schachar R, Crosbie J, Kelley E, Ayub M, Brian J, Liu X, Arnold PD, Georgiades S, Duerden EG. Amygdala subnuclei volumes and anxiety behaviors in children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Human Brain Mapping 2022;43:4805-4816

  8. LaForge-MacKenzie K, Tombeau Cost K, Tsujimoto KC, Crosbie J, Charach A, Anagnostou E, Birken CS, Monga S, Kelley E, Burton CL, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Korczak DJ. Participating in extracurricular activities and school sports during the COVID-19 pandemic: Associations with child and youth mental health. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living 2022;4:936041

  9. Penner M, Dupuis A, Arnold P, Ayub M, Crosbie J, Georgiades S, Kelley E, Nicolson R, Schachar R, Anagnostou E. Pubertal stage, sex and behaviour in neurodevelopmental disorders versus typical development: a cross-sectional study. BMJ Pediatrics Open 2022;6:e001469

  10. Nakua H, Hawco C, Forde NJ, Jacobs GR, Joseph M, Voineskos A, Wheeler AL, Lai MC, Stazmari P, Liu X, Kelley E, Georgiades S, Nicolson R, Crosbie J, Schachar K, Anagnostou E, Lerch JP, Arnold PD, Ameis S. Cortico-amygdalar connectivity and externalizing/internalizing behavior in children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Brain Structure and Function, 2022;227:1963-1979

  11. Gharehgazlou A, Vandewouw M, Ziolkowski J, Wong J, Crosbie J, Schachar R, Nicolson R, Giorgiades S, Kelley E, Ayub M, Hammill C, Ameis SH, Taylor MJ, Lerch JP, Anagnostou E. Cortical gyrification morphology in ASD and ADHD: implication for further similarities or disorder-specific features? Cerebral Cortex, 2022;32:2332-2342

  12. Charalampopoulou M, Choi EJ, Korczak DJ, Cost KT, Crosbie J, Birken CS, Charach A, Monga S, Kelley E, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Ayub M, Schachar RJ, Iaboni A, Anagnostou E. Mental health profiles of autistic children and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pediatrics and Child Health, 2022;27:S59-S65

  13. Cost K, Crosbie J, Anagnoustou E, Birken CS, Charach A, Monga S, Kelley E, Nicolson R, Maguire JL, Burton CL, Schachar RJ, Arnold PD, Korczak DJ. Mostly worse, occasionally better: Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of North American children and adolescents. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 2022;31:671-684

  14. Safar K, Vandewouw MM, Pang EW, Crosbie J, Schachar R, Iaboni A, Georgiades S, Nicolson R, Kelley E, Ayub M, Lerch JP, Anagnostou E, Taylor MJ. Shared and distinct patterns of functional connectivity to emotional faces in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Children. Frontiers in Psychology 2022;13:826527

  15. Li X, Vanderloo LM, Keown-Stoneman CDG, Cost KT, Charach A, Maguire JL, Monga S, Crosbie J, Burton C, Anagnostou E, Georgiades S, Nicolson R, Kelley E, Ayub M, Korczak DJ, Birken CS. Screen use and mental health symptoms in Canadian children and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic. JAMA Network Open 2021;4:e2140875

  16. Kuenzel E, Seguin D, Nicolson R, Duerden EG. Early adversity and positive parenting: association with cognitive outcomes in children with ASD. Autism Research 2021;14:2654–2662

  17. Lambe LJ, Burton CL, Anagnostou E, Kelley E, Nicolson R, Georgiades G, Soreni N, Schachar RJ, Hanna G, Arnold PD, Crosbie J. Clinical validation of the Toronto Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (TOCS): A pediatric open-source rating scale. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry Advances. 2021;1:e12056. Coauthor

  18. McDonnell CG, DeLucia EA, Hayden EP, Penner M, Curcin K, Anagnostou E, Nicolson R, Kelley E, Georgiades S, Liu X, Stevenson RA. Sex differences in age of diagnosis and first concern among children with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology 2021;50:645-655

  19. Scheerer NE, Curcin K, Stojanoski B, Anagnostou E, Nicolson R, Kelley E, Georgiades S, Liu X, Stevenson RA. Exploring sensory phenotypes in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Molecular Autism 2021;12:67

  20. Kushki A, Cardy RE, Panahandeh S, Malihi M, Hammill C, Brian J, Iaboni A, Taylor MJ, Schachar R, Crosbie J, Arnold P, Kelley E, Ayub M, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Lerch JP, Anagnostou E. Cross-diagnosis structural correlates of Autistic-like social communication difficulties. Cerebral Cortex, 2021;31:5067-5076

  21. Brierley N, McDonnell CG, Park KMA, Schulz SE, Dalal TC, Kelley E, Anagnostou E , Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Crosbie J, Schachar R, Liu X, Stevenson RA. Factor structure of repetitive behaviors across Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2021;51:3391-3400

  22. Siu MT, Goodman S, Yellan I, Butcher DT, Jangjoo M, Grafodatskaya D, Rajendram R, Lou Y, Zhang R, Zhao C, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Szatmari P, Scherer SW, Roberts W, Anagnostou E, Weksberg R. DNA methylation of the oxytocin receptor across neurodevelopmental disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2021;51:3610-3623

  23. Rinaldo E, Anagnostou E, Ayub M, Georgiades S, Nicolson R, Kelley E. Investigating language skills as a mediator between IQ and anxiety in autistic youth. Research In Autism Spectrum Disorders, 2021;88:101846

  24. Seguin D, Pac S, Wang J, Nicolson R, Martinez-Trujillo J, Duerden EG. Amygdala subnuclei development in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder: association with social communication and repetitive behaviors. Brain and Behavior, 2021;11:e2299

  25. Dupuis A, Moon MJ, Brian J, Georgiades S, Levy T, Anagnostou E, Nicolson R, Schachar RL, Crosbie J. Concurrent validity of the ABAS II and the Vineland II interview in a pediatric ASD sample: high correspondence despite systematically lower scores. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2021;51:1417-1427

  26. Jangjoo M, Goodman SJ, Choufani S, Trost B, Roshandel D, Scherer SW, Paterson AD, Kelley E, Ayub M, Nicolson R, Georgiades S, Crosbie J, Schachar R, Szatmari P, Anagnostou E, Grunebaum E, Weksberg R. An epigenetically distinct subset of children with autism spectrum disorder resulting from differences in blood cell composition. Frontiers in Neurology, 2021;12:612817