Autism Mental Health | new info, promising data - finding what works

We are making progress with identifying markers and cause - effect of Autism, and with that some researchers are now utilizing computer based treatments as a way to help. 

Every bit leads to a higher understanding of what works and what needs to be developed further, that is the way our culture has always operated.  

Progress is always going to be small steps forward and sometimes backward, here is a good look at one process that is gaining ground on seeking treatment for high-functioning children with autism spectrum disorder (HFASD).

Mental Health Help from the study:  High-functioning children with autism spectrum disorder who received emotion-recognition instruction via a computer program and then practiced with clinical staff showed significantly improved emotion-recognition skills and lower parental ratings of autism symptoms, according to a study in the online Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Researchers tested their treatment—which consisted of Mind Reading software, emotion recognition and expression practice sessions with clinical staff, and positive reinforcement for accurately recognizing emotions—with 22 high-functioning children with autism spectrum disorder during 24 sessions over 12 weeks. A control group consisted of 21 additional high- functioning 7- to 12-year-olds with autism spectrum disorder.

When researchers compared the two groups after the 12-week session, children who received treatment:

• Showed significantly improved emotion-recognition skills
• Scored significantly better parent ratings of facial-emotion recognition and expression
• Received significantly lower parent ratings of autism symptoms, including social impairment, than children in the control group

Furthermore, gains in emotion recognition and expression were maintained through follow-up 2 to 3 months later.

“These findings represent an important step as they suggest that emotion recognition and expression skills of children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder can be significantly improved and autism symptoms and impairments reduced by providing direct instruction, real-life practice opportunities, and reinforcement for accuracy,” said Marcus L. Thomeer, PhD, co-director of the Institute for Autism Research at Canisius College, Buffalo, NY.

This is the first randomized trial of the Mind Reading computer program for children with HFASD and results suggest that the software can be especially effective when additional treatment elements including repeated real-life practice opportunities and reinforcement are included.

Computer-based treatments such as Mind Reading have been identified as particularly appealing for this population as children with HFASD reportedly have an affinity toward working on computers.

Reading and sharing information of this nature is good news, we like progress and we even more so like seeing positive outcomes.