There are various treatments and therapies for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that are being used and they can be separated into two main categories. The first group of therapies focuses on reducing problematic behaviour and improving communication and socialisation. The second group addresses sensory integration problems and motor skills. Although there are currently many treatments and therapies, scientists are always looking for methods to customise assessments to improve individualised treatment.
Recent research from Thomas Jefferson University shows that adding sensory integration to autism assessments helps obtain more information from patients to help guide parents of autistic children on what treatments and therapies they should explore. The findings of the study shows that experts can use the results from assessments to help patients better understand their surroundings.
How this sensory integration assessment works is that a child is tested for their capacity to perceive and process sensory experiences. This includes vision, hearing, touch, position, balance and how able they are to integrate these skills into motor tasks. The assessment is able to single out which sensory skills a patient is stronger or weaker at. For example, the assessment may show that a patient has no issues dealing with loud classrooms but had trouble buttoning their clothes or holding their pencil. After further assessment, if the patient also cannot differentiate the feeling of a metal can or a tennis ball, then this would suggest that the patient needs to work on improving their tactile discrimination in order to recognise the differences of various objects.
Overall, adding sensory integration to autism assessments seems to warrant the additional cost as it is effective at targeting the specific weaknesses of a patient which will help their development moving forwards. Autistic students need to overcome their sensory integration problems so that they can focus on learning in the classroom.
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