Ooi Y P, Lam C M, Sung M, Tan W T S, Goh T J, Fung D S S, Pathy P, Ang R P, Chua A
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Mental Health, Child Guidance Clinic, Health Promotion Board, 3 Second Hospital Avenue #03-01, Singapore 168937.
Singapore Med J. 2008 Mar;49(3):215-20.
Children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) often exhibit one or more comorbid disorders, including anxiety, disruptive behaviour, mental retardation, and depression. Various studies have documented the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) in treating children with anxiety. Although studies have indicated a high prevalence of anxiety in individuals with ASD, there is a lack of systematic studies substantiating the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural interventions among children with high-functioning autism.
This pilot study investigated the effects of a 16-session CBT programme on six high-functioning children diagnosed with ASD (mean age 11.50 years, standard deviation 0.84 years). These children were diagnosed with ASD or Asperger's syndrome by the DSM-IV criteria. Measures on levels of child's anxiety, parental and teacher stress were administered at pre- and post-treatment.
Children showed lower levels of anxiety at post-treatment. Parents and teachers also reported lower levels of stress following the CBT programme.
Findings from the present study provided some evidence of the effects of CBT for high-functioning autistic children in reducing anxiety, parental and teacher stress. Interpretation of the findings, recommendations for future research and implications of the present study are presented.
患有自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的儿童通常会表现出一种或多种共病，包括焦虑、破坏性行为、智力迟钝和抑郁。各种研究已经证明认知行为疗法（CBT）在治疗焦虑儿童方面的有效性。尽管研究表明ASD患者中焦虑症的患病率很高，但缺乏系统研究来证实认知行为干预对高功能自闭症儿童的有效性。
这项试点研究调查了一个为期16节的CBT项目对6名被诊断为ASD的高功能儿童（平均年龄11.50岁，标准差0.84岁）的影响。这些儿童根据《精神疾病诊断与统计手册》第四版（DSM-IV）标准被诊断为ASD或阿斯伯格综合征。在治疗前和治疗后对儿童焦虑水平、父母和教师压力水平进行了测量。
治疗后儿童的焦虑水平降低。父母和教师也报告说，在CBT项目实施后压力水平降低。
本研究结果为CBT对高功能自闭症儿童减轻焦虑、父母和教师压力的效果提供了一些证据。本文还对研究结果进行了解释，提出了未来研究的建议以及本研究的意义。
