Early intervention may be very effective at reducing or even eliminating symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a new study shows.
The study chose seven children, all aged 6 to 15 months old, with early signs of ASD, such as lack of demonstrated interest in communication and lack of eye contact. The study's organizers provided the parents with training on intervention targeting autism prevention. The study then followed the families over the next six months. They found that by the end of the study, by the time the children were 2 or 3, all but one of the seven children showed greatly reduced signs of ASD. The researchers noted that six out of seven of the children caught up to normal learning and language skill levels for their age. This is significant, because most children are not diagnosed with ASD until they are 2 or 3, but this study suggests that the earlier it is caught, the more children might reap the benefits of intervention.
The intervention program was called Infant Start. The study, titled "Autism treatment in the first year of life: A pilot study of Infant Start, a parent-implemented intervention for symptomatic infants," was published on September 9 in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
The researchers credited the program's success with two things: catching signs of autism early, while the children were still infants; and educating the parents on how to engage their children, rather than relying on therapists. The researchers pointed out that a therapist can only spend so much time with a child. The people who have the most potential to change something in a child's life are the parents, because they spend the most day-to-day moments with a child.
"It was the parents - not therapists - who did that," said Sally J. Rogers, one of the co-authors of the study. "Parents are there every day with their babies. It's the little moments of diapering, feeding, playing on the floor, going for a walk, being on a swing, that are the critical learning moments for babies. Those moments are what parents can capitalize on in a way that nobody else really can."
This study presents strong evidence that it might be helpful to provide additional screening tools to diagnose ASD in infants as young as six months old. There are not currently many programs available to help parents of infants who seem at risk for ASD. Sally Ozonoff, one of the study's co-authors, urged communities around the country to consider offering therapy for infants with signs of ASD.
