EDWARD RITVO

RITVO--Edward Ross M.D. passed away peacefully in his Los Angeles home on June 10, 2020 at the age of 90. He was a pioneering researcher in the field of psychiatry, specializing in autism. Through years of research, Dr. Ritvo was the first to scientifically prove that autism was a neurological disease with a genetic component, and not a psychological disease as had been previously thought. Dr. Ritvo was a graduate of Harvard University, Boston University School of Medicine, and was appointed to run the Closed Neuropsychiatric Section during his service in the United States Army. He spent most of his career as a senior administrator, teacher, and mentor at UCLA's prestigious Neuropsychiatric Institute, and contributed articles and/or editorial input to the American Journal of Psychiatry, the Journal of Pediatric Psychology, the Journal of American Academy of Child Psychiatry, the Journal of Autism and Childhood Schizophrenia, and numerous other prestigious publications. In his youth, he was an avid rower, a skier on the Harvard ski team, and a mountain climber who once climbed Mount Blanc. Dr. Ritvo lectured and taught extensively on autism and child development throughout the world and was a consultant to the FDA and numerous school districts, corporations and governmental entities. His work continued throughout his entire life, including pioneering work through telemedicine (telepsychiatry), and a recently published article that describes a possible diagnostic biomarker for autism, which was the culmination of studies he began early in his career. He is survived by his sister, Marion Freemont-Smith, and his children, Eva Ritvo, Anne Bielamowicz, Matthew Ritvo, Victoria Ritvo-Black, Skylre Ritvo, and his twelve grandchildren. He was predeceased by his children Deborah Louria and Max Ritvo. The family requests donations in his honor to the Cedars Sinai Heart Transplant Program, Bold Beauty Project, or Sarcoma Research organizations.