Jonkman Kim M, Back Elisa, Begeer Sander
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Kingston University London, UK.
Autism. 2023 Feb;27(2):428-442. doi: 10.1177/13623613221102748. Epub 2022 Jun 13.
Autism is a condition that is characterised by social communication difficulties and restrictive and repetitive behaviours or interests. Autism can present in many different ways and various interventions are available. Some interventions are conventional, and they are recommended to be used for children with autism (guideline therapies) or for other disorders such as anxiety or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (mainstream therapies or medication), while others are less conventional (other therapies or medication, they are discouraged, unknown or alternative). Little is known about who chooses which intervention. This study found that most autistic children use some kind of intervention. Children who attend special education or have an additional diagnosis (other than autism) tend to receive more therapies, while children with a lower IQ receive fewer therapies. Older children, children with a higher IQ and girls are more likely to use conventional (mainstream or guideline) therapies. Children whose parents have a lower educational level are more likely to have used conventional medication. Whereas, children with more sensory issues (e.g. sensitivity to sound, smell or movement) were more likely to have used unconventional medication. This study found that other autism-related characteristics such as the number of autism symptoms, social skills and repetitive and restrictive behaviours were not related to the interventions used. More treatments focussed on multiple problems should be available for children with autism who have additional difficulties.
自闭症是一种以社交沟通困难以及局限和重复行为或兴趣为特征的病症。自闭症有多种不同的表现形式，且有多种干预措施可供选择。一些干预措施是常规的，建议用于自闭症儿童（指导性疗法）或其他病症，如焦虑症或注意力缺陷多动障碍（主流疗法或药物治疗），而其他一些则不太常规（其他疗法或药物治疗，不鼓励使用、情况不明或为替代疗法）。对于谁会选择哪种干预措施，人们了解甚少。这项研究发现，大多数自闭症儿童会使用某种干预措施。接受特殊教育或有其他诊断（除自闭症外）的儿童往往接受更多的治疗，而智商较低的儿童接受的治疗较少。年龄较大的儿童、智商较高的儿童和女孩更有可能使用常规（主流或指导性）疗法。父母教育水平较低的儿童更有可能使用常规药物。然而，感官问题较多（如对声音、气味或运动敏感）的儿童更有可能使用非传统药物。这项研究发现，其他与自闭症相关的特征，如自闭症症状的数量、社交技能以及重复和局限行为，与所使用的干预措施无关。对于有其他困难的自闭症儿童，应该提供更多针对多种问题的治疗方法。
