The Influence of Occupational Therapy on Indications of the Sensory Profile of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

The purpose of the study is to assess the effectiveness of occupational therapy on the sensory integration indicators of children with autism spectrum disorders in early childhood. Materials and methods. 60 patients (from 3 to 5 years old), who received rehabilitation measures for 6 months, participated in the study. In the control group, children received a standard corrective program. Children of the main group 1 additionally went through occupational therapy sessions, which were addressed to developing self-care skills. In the main group 2, in addition to the main group 1 therapy, children received sensory integration therapy (imitation abilities, orientation in space, coordination, sensory perception, changing the sensory environment). The study used a short sensory profile. Evaluation was carried out by occupational therapists before the start of the intervention and after completion of the program. Results and discussion. Comparison of the three groups according to the initial results of the total sensory profile score did not establish statistical differences between the groups (χ²=2.594; p=0.273). The initial indicators of х̅ ± SD of the total score in the control group were 88.4 ± 4.11 points, in the main group 1 – 91.45 ± 7.12 points, and in the main group 2 – 89.7 ± 7.83 points. Comparison of the three groups according to the final results of the total sensory profile score established statistical differences (F=604.805; p<0.001). х̅ ± SD indicators in the control group were 100.5 ± 4.56 points, in the main group 1 – 158 ± 6.61 points, and in the main group 2 – 165 ± 7.73 points. A conducted posteriori test established the presence of statistical differences between the control group and other groups (p<0.001), between the main group 1 and the main group 2 (p<0.01). It should be noted that the increase in х̅ in the control group was 12.1 points, in the main group 1 – 66.55 points, and in the main group 2 – 75.3 points, which was 13.69%, 72.77% and 83.95% of the initial values, respectively in groups. Conclusion. The addition of occupational therapy sessions to a standard remedial program improved the effectiveness of the intervention on all item scores and the Short Sensory Profile total score. However, adding occupational therapy classes and sensory integration therapy to the standard correctional program had the best effect on sensory integrative indicators. The results obtained by us are a consequence of the fact that in the control group the changes were less shown than in other groups, and in the main group 2 they were the most shown. At the same time, in the main group 1 and main group 2, the comparison of the final and initial results established statistical changes in all points of the sensory profile