Raymond F. Palmer

{{short description|American autism researcher}}

{{Infobox scientist

|name=Raymond Francis Palmer

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|fields=Family medicine, child psychiatry

|workplaces=University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

|alma_mater=University of Southern California

|thesis_title=Cardiovascular reactivity as a moderator of the relation between cynical hostility and serum lipids : are there genetic influences?

|thesis_url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/36930112

|thesis_year=1995

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Raymond F. Palmer is an associate professor of family and community medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA), a post he has held since 2003.{{cite web|url=http://www.barshop.uthscsa.edu/main/facultystaff/barshopfaculty/u121|title=Raymond Palmer, PhD|publisher=University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio|access-date=13 November 2013}} His area of expertise is biostatistics.

In one study, Palmer et al. correlated Environmental Protection Agency data about the release of mercury in 254 Texas counties with special education cases and autism diagnoses in the state's 1,200 school districts.{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-mar-17-sci-autism17-story.html|title=Possible Mercury, Autism Connection Found in Study|work=Los Angeles Times|date=17 March 2005|access-date=2 November 2013|author=Maugh, Thomas H.}}{{Cite journal |last1=Palmer|first1=R. F. |last2=Blanchard|first2=S. |last3=Stein|first3=Z. |last4=Mandell|first4=D. |last5=Miller|first5=C. |title=Environmental mercury release, special education rates, and autism disorder: An ecological study of Texas |doi=10.1016/j.healthplace.2004.11.005 |journal=Health & Place |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=203–9 |year=2006 |pmid=16338635}} At a press conference, Palmer stated that "This is not a definitive study, but just one more that furthers the association between environmental mercury and autism."{{cite web|url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424120953.htm|title=Autism Risk Linked To Distance From Power Plants, Other Mercury-Releasing Sources|work=Science Daily|date=25 April 2008|access-date=2 November 2013}} Thomas Lewandowski stated in a viewpoint that "... the conclusions drawn from the analysis are questionable",{{Cite journal|last1=Lewandowski|first1=T. A.|title=Questions regarding environmental mercury release, special education rates, and autism disorder: An ecological study of Texas by Palmer et al|doi=10.1016/j.healthplace.2005.10.005|journal=Health & Place|volume=12|issue=4|pages=749–750|year=2006|pmid=16337825}} and Palmer told WebMD that this type of study is not necessarily proof of a causative link between mercury and autism.{{cite web|url=http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20050318/mercury-air-pollution-link-to-autism|title=Mercury in Air Pollution: A Link to Autism?|publisher=WebMD|date=18 March 2005|access-date=2 November 2013|author=Denoon, Daniel J.}}

Palmer has studied baby teeth for environmental toxins the children could have been exposed to during the prenatal period; this research was funded by a Suzanne and Bob Wright Trailblazer grant from Autism Speaks.{{cite web|url=http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2012/07/13/what%E2%80%99s-new-environmental-research|title=What's New in Environmental Research?|publisher=Autism Speaks official blog|date=13 July 2012|access-date=2 November 2013}} He has also studied the differences in autism rates between Hispanic children and white children, and has concluded that the former are less likely to be diagnosed with the disorder than the latter. He says that this difference is unlikely to be solely an artifact of socioeconomic factors.{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-autism-hispanics-idUSTRE5BS30T20091229|title=Texas study confirms lower autism rate in Hispanics|work=Reuters|date=29 December 2009|access-date=4 November 2013}}{{Cite journal|last1=Palmer|first1=R. F.|last2=Walker|first2=T.|last3=Mandell|first3=D.|last4=Bayles|first4=B.|last5=Miller|first5=C. S.|title=Explaining Low Rates of Autism Among Hispanic Schoolchildren in Texas|doi=10.2105/AJPH.2008.150565|journal=American Journal of Public Health|volume=100|issue=2|pages=270–272|year=2010|pmid=20019320|pmc=2804636}}