Sensory Experiences in Children with Autism

项目摘要(摘要) 据报道，69%的自闭症儿童有不寻常的感觉体验，这些特征被认为是 对发育、适应行为和家庭功能有负面影响。这样做的目的是 项目是解释感官特征的发展过程、功能影响和发病机制 对早期发现和干预的影响。该项目将研究三种常见的感觉 反应模式：低反应、高反应和感官寻求。目标是：1)确定 自闭症和发育迟缓儿童感觉特征的纵向变化；2)测量感觉特征如何 影响儿童的适应行为(日常生活、功能性沟通/社交技能以及 参与家庭/社区活动)、适应不良行为(刻板印象特征、社会情绪 问题)和家庭功能(父母压力)；以及3)隔离特定的神经认知和背景风险 与可观察到的感觉问题相关的因素。四项相互关联的研究(总计n=210)将 实现这些目标。研究1(前瞻性纵向设计)使用现有的队列来检查稳定性 从学龄前(2-6岁)到学龄期(6-12岁)的感觉特征。时期，以及功能影响 这些关于儿童/家庭结果的特点。研究2使用回溯性视频分析来确定先兆 婴儿期(9-18个月)自闭症儿童的感觉特征，与对照组的区别，以及 预测学龄前/学龄期的发展结果。研究3使用了实验室测量的组合， 父母和言语儿童的个人描述，以及家庭行为观察以确定 在日常生活中引起异常感官特征及其对家庭功能的影响的环境背景。 研究4使用电生理学(ERP)来测试神经认知机制(感觉检测、辨别、 非自愿定向)，据预测，这是特定感觉表型的基础。因此，在一个子组中 儿童，来自4个发展时间点(早期婴儿期、后期婴儿期、学龄前和学校)的汇聚数据 年)将确保使用混合方法研究自闭症患者感觉特征的变化轨迹。我们的 这一发现可能对理解大脑与行为的联系、异常的早期风险标记物 感觉特征及其发展过程，以及可能改善儿童和儿童健康的新的干预策略 家庭功能正常。[这些目标与NIH自闭症研究矩阵优先事项16、19、22、23和26一致。]项目叙事 相关性 虽然感觉问题，如对声音、触觉和视觉刺激的反应不足/过度反应是非常常见的 在患有自闭症和其他发育障碍的儿童中，几乎没有研究定义这些特征是如何 随着时间的推移发生的变化，是什么导致了它们的发生，以及它们对孩子的 发展、父母的福祉和社会参与。因为我们对感官知之甚少 自闭症的特点，家庭容易受到无数无效的基于感觉的治疗，这些声称 解决这些问题的方法。这项研究的发现将解决上述文献中的局限性，并可能 对了解潜在的大脑-行为联系，异常感觉的早期风险标记物有影响 特征及其发展过程，以及旨在改善儿童和家庭的新干预策略 功能正常。

Project Summary (Abstract) Unusual sensory experiences are reported in 69% of children with autism and these features are thought to have negative consequences on development, adaptive behavior, and family functioning. The purpose of this project is to explain the developmental course, functional impact, and pathogenesis of sensory features with implications for early detection and intervention. The project will study three commonly observed sensory response patterns: hyporesponsive, hyperresponsive, and sensory seeking. The aims are to: 1) determine longitudinal changes in sensory features in children with autism and DD; 2) measure how sensory features impact children's adaptive behaviors (daily living, functional communication/social skills, and level of participation in home/community activities), maladaptive behaviors (stereotyped features, social-emotional problems), and family functioning (parental strain); and 3) isolate specific neurocognitive and contextual risk factors that are associated with the observable sensory problems. Four interrelated studies (total n=210) will address these aims. Study 1 (prospective longitudinal design) uses an existing cohort to examine stability of sensory features from the preschool (2-6 yrs) to the school-age (6-12 yrs.) period, and the functional impact of these features on child/ family outcomes. Study 2 employs retrospective video analysis to identify precursors of sensory features in children with autism during infancy (9-18 months), differentiate these from controls, and predict to preschool/school-age developmental outcomes. Study 3 uses a combination of lab measures, personal accounts of parents and verbal children, and in-home behavioral observations to determine the environmental contexts that elicit unusual sensory features and their impact on family functioning in daily life. Study 4 uses electrophysiology (ERP) to test neurocognitive mechanisms (sensory detection, discrimination, involuntary orienting) that are predicted to underlie specific sensory phenotypes. Thus, in a subgroup of children, convergent data from 4 developmental time points (early infancy, later infancy, preschool and school years) will be secured to study change trajectories in sensory features in autism using mixed methods. Our findings may have implications for understanding brain-behavior linkages, early risk markers of unusual sensory features and their developmental course, and novel intervention strategies that may improve child and family functioning. [These aims are consistent with NIH Autism Research Matrix priorities #16, 19, 22, 23 & 26.] Project Narrative Relevance Although sensory problems such as under/over-reactions to sounds, touch, and visual stimuli are very common in children with autism and other developmental disorders, there is little research defining how these features change over time, what causes them to occur, and how much they negatively impact upon a child's development, the parent's well-being, and social participation. Because so little is known about sensory features in autism, families are vulnerable to myriad non-efficacious sensory-based treatments that purport cures for these issues. Findings from this study will address the above limitations in the literature and may have implications for understanding potential brain-behavior linkages, early risk markers of unusual sensory features and their developmental course, and novel intervention strategies aimed at improving child and family functioning.