Ge Li-Kun, Man Xiaoxia, Cai Kelong, Liu Zhimei, Tsang William Wainam, Chen Aiguo, Wei Gao-Xia
CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, 100101, China.
Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
J Autism Dev Disord. 2024 Sep 4. doi: 10.1007/s10803-024-06528-7.
Impaired joint attention is a common feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), affecting social interaction and communication. We explored if group basketball learning could enhance joint attention in autistic children, and how this relates to brain changes, particularly white matter development integrity. Forty-nine autistic children, aged 4-12 years, were recruited from special education centers. The experimental group underwent a 12-week basketball motor skill learning, while the control group received standard care. Eye-tracking and brain scans were conducted. The 12-week basketball motor skill learning improved joint attention in the experimental group, evidenced by better eye tracking metrics and enhanced white matter integrity. Moreover, reduced time to first fixation correlated positively with decreased mean diffusivity of the left superior corona radiata and left superior fronto-occipital fasciculus in the experimental group. Basketball-based motor skill intervention effectively improved joint attention in autistic children. Improved white matter fiber integrity related to sensory perception, spatial and early attention function may underlie this effect. These findings highlight the potential of group motor skill learning within clinical rehabilitation for treating ASD.
联合注意受损是自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的一个常见特征，会影响社交互动和沟通。我们探讨了团体篮球学习是否能增强自闭症儿童的联合注意，以及这与大脑变化（特别是白质发育完整性）有何关系。从特殊教育中心招募了49名4至12岁的自闭症儿童。实验组接受了为期12周的篮球运动技能学习，而对照组接受标准护理。进行了眼动追踪和脑部扫描。为期12周的篮球运动技能学习改善了实验组的联合注意，这通过更好的眼动追踪指标和增强的白质完整性得到证明。此外，实验组首次注视时间的减少与左侧额上回放射冠和左侧额上枕束平均扩散率的降低呈正相关。基于篮球的运动技能干预有效地改善了自闭症儿童的联合注意。与感觉知觉、空间和早期注意功能相关的白质纤维完整性的改善可能是这种效果的基础。这些发现凸显了临床康复中团体运动技能学习在治疗ASD方面的潜力。
