Simons Foundation, 160 5th Avenue, New York, NY, 10010, USA.
Maryland Center for Developmental Disabilities, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, 21211, USA.
J Autism Dev Disord. 2021 Oct;51(10):3766-3773. doi: 10.1007/s10803-020-04816-6. Epub 2021 Jan 2.
The impact of the 2019 coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) in the United States is unprecedented, with unknown implications for the autism community. We surveyed 3502 parents/caregivers of individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) enrolled in Simons Powering Autism Research for Knowledge (SPARK) and found that most individuals with ASD experienced significant, ongoing disruptions to therapies. While some services were adapted to telehealth format, most participants were not receiving such services at follow-up, and those who were reported minimal benefit. Children under age five had the most severely disrupted services and lowest reported benefit of telehealth adaptation. Caregivers also reported worsening ASD symptoms and moderate family distress. Strategies to support the ASD community should be immediately developed and implemented.
2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行对美国的影响前所未有，对自闭症群体产生了未知的影响。我们调查了参加西蒙斯推动自闭症研究以获取知识（SPARK）的 3502 名自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）个体的家长/照顾者，发现大多数 ASD 个体的治疗均受到严重、持续的干扰。虽然一些服务已经适应了远程医疗模式，但在随访中，大多数参与者并未接受此类服务，而那些接受了服务的人则报告获益甚微。五岁以下儿童的服务受干扰最严重，远程医疗适应性报告获益最小。照顾者还报告自闭症症状恶化和中度家庭困扰。应立即制定和实施支持自闭症群体的策略。
