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Benefits of Speech Therapy for Autism

Autism may be linked with a wide range of traits. These include:

Repetitive activities

Extreme resistance to changes in daily routines

Unusual responses to things such as touch

People with autism may have major problems with both speech and nonverbal communication. They may also find it very hard to interact socially. For these reasons, speech therapy is a central part of treatment for autism. Speech therapy can address a wide range of communication problems for people with autism.

Each child with an autism spectrum disorder will have his or her own individual pattern of behavior. Sometimes, a child's development is delayed from birth. Other children with autism develop normally before suddenly losing social or language skills. In some children, a loss of language is the impairment. In others, unusual behaviors (like spending hours lining up toys) predominate. Parents are usually the first to notice something is wrong. Symptoms of autism include: Extreme difficulty...

What are the common speech and communication problems with autism?

Autism can affect speech, language development, and social communication in many ways.

Speech problems. A person with autism may:

Not talk at all

Utter grunts, cries, shrieks, or throaty, harsh sounds

Hum or talk in a musical way

Babble with word-like sounds

Use foreign-sounding "words" or robotic-like speech

Parrot or often repeat what another person says (called echolalia)

Use the right phrases and sentences, but with an unexpressive tone of voice

About one out of three people with autism has trouble producing speech sounds to effectively communicate with others. Their language is simply too hard to understand.

Communication problems. A person with autism may have one or more of these communication challenges:

Trouble with conversational skills, which includes eye contact and gestures

Trouble understanding the meaning of words outside the context where they were learned

Memorization of things heard without knowing what's been said

Reliance on echolalia as the main way to communicate

Little understanding of the meaning of words or symbols

Lack of creative language

Because of these challenges, a child with autism must do more than learn how to speak. The child also has to learn how to use language to communicate. This includes knowing how to hold a conversation. It also includes tuning into both verbal and nonverbal cues -- such as facial expressions, tone of voice, and body language -- from other people.

What role does speech therapy play in the treatment of autism?

Speech-language pathologists are therapists who specialize in treating language problems and speech disorders. They are a key part of the autism treatment team.

With early screening and detection of people at risk, speech therapists often lead the way in helping with the diagnosis of autism and in making referrals to other specialists.

Once autism is diagnosed, speech therapists assess the best ways to improve communication and enhance a person's quality of life. Throughout therapy, the speech-language pathologist also works closely with the family, school, and other professionals. If someone with autism is nonverbal or has major trouble with speech, the speech therapist may introduce alternatives to speech.

Speech therapy techniques might include:

Electronic "talkers"

Signing or typing

Using picture boards with words

Using sounds to which a person is over- or under-sensitive to expand and compress speech sounds

Improving articulation of speech by massaging or exercising lips or facial muscles
Having individuals sing songs composed to match the rhythm, stress, and flow of sentences

Some of these techniques are supported more by research than others. Be sure to discuss them thoroughly with the speech-language pathologist and pediatrician.

What are the benefits of speech therapy for autism?

Speech therapy can improve overall communication. This makes it possible for people with autism to improve their ability to form relationships and function in day-to-day life.

Specific goals of speech therapy include helping the individual with autism to:

Articulate words well

Communicate both verbally and nonverbally

Comprehend verbal and nonverbal communication, understanding others' intentions in a range of settings

Initiate communication without prompting from others

Know the appropriate time and place to communicate something, for example, when to say "good morning"

Develop conversational skills

Exchange ideas

Communicate in ways to develop relationships

Enjoy communicating, playing, and interacting with peers

Learn self-regulation

When is the best time to start speech therapy for autism?

The earlier, the better. Autism is usually evident before age 3. It is very important to start speech therapy as early as possible, when it can have the greatest impact. Intensive, individualized treatment can help lessen the disabling isolation that may result from this social communication disability.

With early identification and intervention, two out of three preschoolers with autism improve communication skills and their grasp of spoken language. Research shows those who improve the most are often those who receive the most speech therapy.

Article from Autism Speaks about NEW MEDICINE

 

The next step toward treatment for the core symptoms of autism

June 23, 2011 Autism Speaks

by Chief Science Officer of Autism Speaks, Geraldine Dawson, Ph.D.
I often get the question: How is the research we are funding on single gene disorders, such as Fragile X, relevant to the larger population of individuals with ASD? My answer is that, although autism has many different causes – including single gene mutations, multiple genetic factors, and even environmental factors – it is likely that these causes affect common underlying biological pathways. By studying the “simpler” single gene disorders, especially by studying animal models of these disorders, we can discover these pathways and develop medications that hopefully can help restore the functioning of these pathways.

As you will see in the press release, this strategy is being implemented by Seaside Therapeutics. With the help of funding from Autism Speaks and NIH, Mark Bear and other scientists developed an animal model for Fragile X and discovered that glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter, is affected by the Fragile X mutation. An overabundance of glutamate is interfering with the ability of neurons to communicate with each other (synaptic functioning). SeasideTherapeutics then tested a medicine, STX209 (arbaclofen), which helps to restore normal synaptic functioning, in a clinical trial with people with Fragile X. They found encouraging results! The next step, which was launched yesterday, is to test the efficacy of STX209 in individuals with ASD. The hope is that this medicine will improve social behavior and reduce irritability (e.g. aggression, tantrums) in people with ASD.

In the press release Randall L. Carpenter, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Seaside Therapeutics says, “In our open-label Phase 2a study of STX209, we observed significant improvements in social impairment—a core symptom of autism spectrum disorders—including symptoms such as preference to be alone, being withdrawn or isolated, and lack of social reactivity. We are spearheading late-stage development of a drug candidate that has the potential to change the treatment paradigm for autism spectrum disorders—addressing core symptoms—and are truly excited about the prospect of helping patients and their families achieve an improved quality of life.”
Arbaclofen acts by stimulating the release of GABA in the brain. To make an simplified analogy, if we think of glutamate as the accelerator pedal in brain, then GABA is the brake pedal. By reducing glutamate through stimulating GABA receptors, the first clinical trial with people who have Fragile X syndrome demonstrated positive effects on behavior.

In Phase 2b of the trial, 25 sites will conduct a randomized, placebo-controlled trial of arbaclofen, enrolling 150 people with ASD for a total duration of treatment of 12 weeks. For more information about the clinical trial visit http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ .

We will be sure to keep you informed as this study and other translational research progresses!
Here is the link to the blog:
Autism Speaks Blog

Update On Clinical Trial

Noah is in a clinical trial for new medicine for ASD to improve social skills At Vanderbilt in Nashville. We are 2 months into the study and its a "blind study" we don't know if he is on the medicine or not. I firmly believe he is on the medicine because I have seen a remarkable changes in his behavior, his communication, he is noticing his environment, he is reading billboards that we pass its been amazing.

The thing is with the study is we are going to have to withdraw in the next month or so. We will be able to put him back on it after the withdrawal period. Since we participated in the study we have that option when its over. I am so afraid that when we withdraw him the behaviors will come back, the aggression and so on. But I know that it won't last but about a month, we will decrease the medicine over a 4 week period. The medicine is used now for individuals with Fragile X.

We are experiencing some MAJOR sleep issues right now, that's one of the side effects insomnia so I don't know what we are going to do about that.  This past week as been really tough at night one night he didn't sleep at all!!  He hasn't been to bed before 2:30 this week.  He is in a great mood, he just can't shut his body down to go to sleep, melatonin is not working right now.

I think it will really make a difference for some kids on the spectrum. I am so truly blessed that we were able to participate!!

Autism Therapy More Successful When Peers Involved Too

By Shaun Heasley

November 29, 2011 Text Size A A

Kids with autism fare significantly better socially when their typically developing classmates are taught how to interact with them, new research suggests.
Often students with autism are targeted for social skills training. But that alone may not be the best approach, according to a study published this week in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.
For the study, researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles looked at 60 kids with autism ages 6 to 11, all of whom were in mainstream classes at least 80 percent of the day.
Some of the children received one-on-one social skills training from a professional. In other cases, a professional taught a group of three typically developing kids from the child’s class how to engage with students who have social difficulties but did not interact with the child who had autism.
Meanwhile, other students in the study benefited from both approaches — individual training and peer training. A control group did not experience either social skills intervention.
Ultimately, the researchers found that children whose peers received training were less likely to spend time alone on the playground as compared to those who received only individual training. In addition, kids who benefited from peer training were more likely to have classmates say that they were friends.
Moreover, the benefits of peer training appear to stick around. Even when kids advanced to new classrooms with different students, researchers found that the children with autism who experienced peer training continued to see improved socialization.
The findings suggest that focusing on typically developing peers in addition to the child with autism may offer the best results, the researchers said. What’s more, they indicated that individual social skills intervention may only be beneficial if professionals also work with the child’s peers.
“Real life doesn’t happen in a lab, but few research studies reflect that,” said Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, which helped fund the study. “As this study shows, taking into account a person’s typical environment may improve treatment outcomes.”
Despite the improvements seen with peer intervention, however, the researchers said it’s not a total fix. Children with autism continued to say they had few friends and struggled with issues like taking turns even when their classmates were taught how to work with them.