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document
Environmental enrichment as a therapy for autism : A clinical trial replication and extension . Based on work done in animal models showing that autism-like symptoms are ameliorated following exposure to an enriched sensorimotor environment , we attempted to develop a comparable therapy for children with autism . In an initial randomized controlled trial , children with autism who received sensorimotor enrichment at home for 6 months had significant improvements in both their cognitive ability and the severity of their autism symptoms ( Woo & Leon , 2013 ) . We now report the outcomes of a similar randomized controlled trial in which children with autism , 3 to 6 years old , were randomly assigned to groups that received either daily sensorimotor enrichment , administered by their parents , along with standard care , or they received standard care alone . After 6 months , enriched children showed statistically significant gains in their IQ scores , a decline in their atypical sensory responses , and an improvement in their receptive language performance , compared to controls . Furthermore , after 6 months of enrichment therapy , 21 % of the children who initially had been given an autism classification , using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule , improved to the point that , although they remained on the autism spectrum , they no longer met the criteria for classic autism . None of the standard care controls reached an equivalent level of improvement . Finally , the outcome measures for children who received only a subset of sensory stimuli were similar to those receiving the full complement of enrichment exercises . Sensorimotor enrichment therapy therefore appears to be a cost-effective means of treating a range of symptoms for children with autism .
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Intervention_Educational
Environmental enrichment
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Intervention_Educational
enriched sensorimotor environment
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Intervention_Educational
sensorimotor enrichment at home
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Intervention_Physical
daily sensorimotor enrichment
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Intervention_Control
received standard care alone
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Outcome_Physical
IQ scores
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Outcome_Physical
atypical sensory responses
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Outcome_Mental
receptive language performance
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Outcome_Physical
outcome measures
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Outcome_Other
cost-effective
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Participant_Condition
autism :
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Participant_Condition
autism
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Participant_Age
children
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Participant_Condition
autism
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Participant_Condition
autism
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Participant_Age
children
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Participant_Condition
autism
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Participant_Age
3 to 6 years old ,