Autism Intervention Effectiveness Unchanged by Increased Amounts

THURSDAY, July 18, 2024 (HealthDay News) — For children with autism, intervention effects do not increase with increased amounts of intervention, according to a study published online June 24 in JAMA Pediatrics.

Micheal Sandbank, Ph.D., from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and colleagues examined whether different metrics of intervention amount are associated with intervention effects on any developmental domain among young children with autism using data from studies taken from a recent meta-analysis of early interventions. The analysis included 144 studies with 9,038 children (mean age, 49.3 months).

The researchers found no evidence for a significant, positive association between any index of intervention amount and intervention effect size when considered within the intervention type based on any of the meta-regression models.

“We concluded that there was not rigorous evidence supporting the notion that increasing the amount of intervention produces better intervention outcomes,” Sandbank said in a statement. “Instead, we recommend that practitioners consider what amount of intervention would be developmentally appropriate for the child and supportive to the family.”

Several authors disclosed ties to relevant organizations.

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