Sensory integration therapy: a trial of a specific neurodevelopmental therapy for the remediation of learning disabilities.

In the population of learning-disabled (LD) children, there appears to be a subsample who demonstrate basic dysfunction in sensory integration. Previous research suggested that sensory integration (SI) therapy may be effective in improving the academic performance of this subsample of LD children. This study is a systematic replication of previous research on the effects of SI therapy on LD children. The 87 LD children in this study manifest moderate SI dysfunction, a vestibular processing disorder, perceptual deficits, and reading retardation. Data on a subgroup of 45 children with markedly depressed postrotary nystagmus are presented. After nine months of individual SI therapy, no systematic effects on any of the dependent variables were discernible. The implications of these findings for further research are discussed.