Autism Therapies Might Not Show Differences in Outcomes: Study

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a complex developmental condition that involves persistent challenges in social interaction, speech, and nonverbal communication among kids. A recent study explored the differences in clinical outcomes by comparing two different therapies for autism.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a lifelong condition for which no cure has been found to date. The current treatments focus on improving the symptoms and maximizing the child’s ability. Researchers now say that toddlers under the two most popular ASD therapies do not show any significantly different outcomes.

The American Psychiatric Association defines ASD as a complex developmental condition that involves persistent challenges in social interaction, speech and nonverbal communication, and restricted/repetitive behaviors. According to the CDC, one in 59 children is estimated to have autism.

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‘Therapies with Early Intensive behavioral intervention and the Early Start Denver Model have many things in common. Both the treatments showed no noticeable differences in the clinical outcomes among toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorder.’

The current study findings are based on the multisite TADPOLE study, conducted from 2012-2019 by research teams at the MIND Institute, University of California Davis, Vanderbilt University, University of Washington, and supported by an independent data coordinating center at the University of California Los Angeles.

Comparing two kinds of therapy models

The team enrolled 87 toddlers with ASD into one of the four groups: Early Intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) for 15 hours per week; EIBI for 25 hours per week; Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) for 15 hours per week; or ESDM for 25 hours per week.

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All the participating kids underwent regular assessments starting from the baseline and at the 6th and 12th months after enrollment. The factors considered in the study were language skills, nonverbal abilities, and autism symptoms.

An expert team monitored the children who received interventions at their homes. Staff members were also evaluated regularly to ensure the quality of treatments given by them.

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“We found that intervention style - EIBI or ESDM - had no significant effects on a child’s progress in language, nonverbal abilities, and autism severity over time. And, contrary to what we expected, a child’s initial severity of developmental delay and autism symptoms did not differentially affect their progress in EIBI compared to ESDM in terms of language, nonverbal abilities, or improved autism symptoms over the year,” said Dr.Sally Rogers, lead author of the study.

Why are the outcomes so similar?

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While many widespread opinions support the positive effects of long-time treatment interventions in ASD kids, both the kind of therapies considered in the study have several common features: consistency in monitoring, supervision by professionals, coaching for parents, and comprehensiveness.

“These commonalities, and the child’s progress, maybe why the parents in our study were so pleased with the intervention they received, regardless of the group to which they were assigned,” added Dr. Rogers.

The research highlighted the importance of learning about the core mechanisms that aid in developing new and personalized therapies for ASD among kids. The author noted: “I firmly believe that ongoing, one-on-one caregiver coaching should be part of all early interventions for children with ASD, regardless of style or intensity. We have demonstrated effects on family support, self-efficacy, and family endorsement of the benefits of ongoing coaching as well as direct child intervention.”

Source-Medindia