Therapies for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders

facilitating sensory integration, language use, sensory skills, and motor skills, with each
participant attending at least two sessions of each type over 15 weeks. Results indicated that
participants engaged in significantly greater use of language and social interaction in the therapy
sessions incorporating animal interaction than in the standard occupational therapy sessions. In
another series, Carmody and colleagues examined the effect of eyeglasses with specialized prism
lenses. 273 Children were recruited from a child development center, and each child was assessed
for 20 to 30 minutes by a single interviewer, with trials of 60 to 90 seconds without glasses and
with each of the lens orientations. Participants showed a significant improvement in a ball
catching when wearing lenses (64 percent compared with 20 percent without lenses).
A 21-week study included 16 boys with ASDs and assessed the effects of a water exercise
program on social skills. 279 Participants had either Asperger syndrome (n=8) or high
functioning/mild autism (n=8) and showed decreases in antisocial behavior following the
swimming program. Finally, Laud and colleagues conducted a prospective case series that
included a systematic feeding program and oral motor therapy aimed at improving feeding
behaviors among children with ASDs. 278 Participants underwent 3 hours of behavioral training
and 1 hour of oral therapy at least 5 days per week. Behavioral training consisted of systematic
meal sessions with individualized behavior protocols while the oral training was conducted by an
occupational therapist or speech pathologist to determine skill and safety while eating.
Significant changes from admission to discharge were found in the following areas: increases in
acceptance and grams consumed, increase in refusal behavior, and a decrease in negative
vocalizations.
KQ1. Effects of Treatment on Core and Commonly Associated Symptoms
in Children With ASDs: Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM)
CAM Interventions
As noted, studies of CAM interventions meeting our criteria addressed acupuncture and
massage, including qigong massage. Table 25 summarizes critical aspects of studies of CAM
interventions addressing KQ1.
Content of the literature. We found seven studies 280-286 of CAM interventions meeting our
inclusion criteria; two studies 282,283 likely contain overlapping participants. Interventions
occurred in the clinic 280,282,283,286 and home, 282-284 and studies addressed massage, 284-286 qigong
massage, 282,283 and acupuncture. 280,281 Treatment duration ranged from 1 284 to 9 months, 280 and
participants’ ages ranged from 3 to 10 years. Among the seven CAM studies, two were fair
quality and five were poor.
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