Treatment And Therapies For Autism Spectrum Disorder

Symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder can vary from person to person and the typical behaviors often change over time. These result in Autism treatment strategies being tailored to meet the individual needs. However, for treating children with autism, highly structured and specialized treatments and therapy sessions are conducted so as to improve their social, behavioral, communication, adaptive, and learning skills. Diagnosing autistic behaviors and patterns within the children in the early stages can help them to overcome all the deficiencies and reach their full potential.

The primary goal of different kinds of autism treatment is to improve the overall ability of the child. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) the following strategies can help an Autistic child to reach his/her potential to the fullest.
Behavioral training programs and therapies- Through behavioral therapies that use self-help, positive reinforcement, and social skills training the behavior and communication of the children can be improved. Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA), Sensory Integration and Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children (TEACCH) are some of the branches of the behavioral training program.
Specialized therapies- Specialized therapies include speech, physical and occupational therapy. These specialized therapies are considered as some of the most important components of treating autism and medical faculties seek to integrate these in a child's treatment program. Speech therapy tends to improve the social and the language skills of the child, enabling him/her to communicate more effectively. Physical therapy and Occupational therapy help improve the deficiencies of coordination and motor skills and also help the child learn to process information in a manageable way, through various senses such as sound, sight, touch, hearing, and smell.
Medicines- Medicines are used to treat problem behaviors and related conditions such as anxiety, depression, OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorders) and hyperactivity. Autistic children might often suffer from insomnia (lack of sleep) and a routine schedule is set for their bedtime and the time to get up. Doctors might try medicines to treat insomnia; however, it is the last resort.
Some of the medical faculties and experts have referred alternative therapies such as auditory integration training and secretin. Another specialized Autism treatment method conditions that is still a topic of debate within the medical faculties is the role of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and its role in improving autistic conditions. Although some studies proved the effectiveness of the HBOT sessions in improving the autistic conditions, the medical faculties have not yet unanimously agreed on its role.
While you are thinking about a specific type of treatment for Autism, you should always seek to find out information whether the treatments are scientifically approved. One or two case studies on a specific treatment are not enough to attest its effectiveness as the symptoms of autism vary from one child to the other. The doctors and the psychologists are yet to identify a definite treatment that would cure autism but relevant studies have revealed that early diagnosis and treatment can surely bring in notable improvements within individual.

Kevin Halls is a senior researcher of Autism Treatment Wisconsin. Through his blog posts and articles he tends to inform the users about different facts about autism, the general symptoms, possible causes and the treatments.

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