Fathers of children with autism spectrum disorder: Their perceptions of paternal role a predictor of caregiving satisfaction,self-efficacy and burden

BackgroundThe positive effect of a father’s involvement in children’s upbringing is now recognised. However, research on fathers raising children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are still few. This study examines the relationship between the perception, fathers of children with ASD have of the importance of their role in the development of their children and the feelings (self-efficacy, caregiving burden, satisfaction) they express about their parenting experience.MethodSixty-three Swiss Italian fathers of children with ASD completed The Role of the Father Questionnaire (ROFQ), three sub-scales of the Caregiver Survey, a subtest of the Child Adjustment and Parent Efficacy Scale and a home-made questionnaire measuring Perceived Social Support.ResultsThe results from hierarchical multiple regression analyses show that the importance that fathers attach to the paternal role predicts positively their caregiving satisfaction and their feeling of self-efficacy. The children’s challenging behaviours predict positively the caregiving burden whereas the assessment of social support predicts it negatively.ConclusionsThe perception of the importance of the paternal role needs to be considered in the support offered to families with a child with ASD. A better understanding of the fathers’ feelings could be of value for the programmes.     

The discrepancy between verbal and visuoperceptual IQ in children with a specific learning disorder: An analysis of 1624 cases

Children with a specific learning disorder (SLD) are often characterized by marked intellectual strengths and weaknesses. In the last few years, research has focused on a common discrepancy between low working memory and processing speed on the one hand, and high verbal and visuoperceptual intelligence on the other. SLD profiles featuring a specific discrepancy between verbal and visuoperceptual abilities have been only marginally considered, however, and their systematic comparison vis-à-vis typically-developing (TD) populations has yet to be conducted. The present study examined a dataset of 1624 WISC-IV profiles of children with a diagnosis of SLD. It emerged that the proportion of children with a Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI) at least 1.5 SD (22 standardized points) lower than their scores on the Perceptual Reasoning Index (PRI) was larger than the proportion of SLD children with the opposite discrepant profile; it was also larger than the same proportion found among TD children. Comparing the two discrepant profiles revealed that the children also differed by type of learning difficulty, gender, and performance in the WISC-IV Symbol search task. Further examination suggested that children who were discrepant and also distinctly poor in visuoperceptual intelligence were particularly slow in general processing.     

Qigong in the treatment of children with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review

BackgroundAutism spectrum disorder is a condition that affects all races, ethnic and socioeconomic groups. With a high incidence ratio of one in every 68, it has become one of the most discussed psychiatric disorders. For this reason, the need for investigating novel treatments has been emerging. Qigong, a traditional Chinese mind-body technique, has already proven to be able to reduce symptoms of several physical and psychological illnesses.ObjectiveThe purpose of this systematic review is to examine and categorize the current scientific evidence regarding the efficacy of Qigong on children suffering from autism spectrum disorders.Search strategyA systematic literature search of the electronic scientific databases PubMed, Clinical Trials.gov, BioMed Central, PubMed Central and Google Scholar was performed to identify studies of Qigong in the treatment of children with autism spectrum disorder.Inclusion criteriaThis review included randomized controlled trials, replication studies, retrospective studies and observational follow-up studies of Qigong on children with autism spectrum disorder. Case reports and case series were excluded.Data extraction and analysisTwo researchers independently evaluated the methodological quality of all included studies. Any discrepancies were solved by discussion until consensus was achieved.ResultsOur literature search identified 157 publications, and 10 additional publications from hand search of references. After duplicate removal, 103 records remained. After the title/abstract screening, 19 publications were obtained for detailed evaluation. After detailed evaluation, 10 studies were included. Seven studies were conducted with small children with 2–6 years old employing Qigong massage, and three studies were conducted with older children aged 7–17 years old applying both Qigong massage (one study) and Neigong (two studies).ConclusionStudies demonstrated that Qigong has interesting and promising applicability and effect on children with autism spectrum disorder and should be tested further. Despite the need for more rigorous controlled studies, Qigong seems to be able to decrease severity of individual sensory, behavioural, and language components of autism, and improve self-control, sociability, sensory and cognitive awareness as well as healthy-physical behaviour. Besides positive effect on children and adolescents, benefits seem to extend to parents and caregivers as well. However, quality of methodology seems to be insufficient to state that Qigong is an alternative to common behavioural therapies. We suggest that, until more investigation is performed, Qigong may only be used as a complement, or when behavioural therapies are not accessible.     

不同药物方案治疗儿童双相情感障碍疗效比较及代谢指标观察

目的 探讨儿童双相情感障碍经不同药物方案治疗后代谢指标的变化及治疗疗效。方法 回顾性分析2017年1月至2020年1月于该院就诊的220例儿童双相情感障碍患儿的临床资料。根据治疗方法分组，单纯采用非典型抗精神病药物治疗的112例患儿纳入对照组，采用非典型抗精神病药物联合心境稳定剂治疗的108例患儿纳入研究组。比较两组基线资料水平，治疗前后代谢指标空腹胰岛素（FIN）、糖化血红蛋白（HbAlc）、总胆固醇（TC）、三酰甘油（TG）、高密度脂蛋白胆固醇（HDL-C）、低密度脂蛋白胆固醇（LDL-C）水平变化，以及代谢综合征发生情况及临床疗效。结果 两组患儿年龄、性别、病程等基线资料比较差异均无统计学意义（P > 0.05）。研究组总有效率为92.6%，高于对照组（82.1%，P < 0.05）。治疗前，两组FIN、HbAlc水平比较差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）；治疗后，对照组FIN水平高于治疗前，且高于研究组（P < 0.05）；但研究组治疗前后FIN水平比较差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）；两组治疗前后HbAlc水平比较差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）。治疗前，两组TC、TG、HDL-C、LDL-C水平比较，差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）；治疗后，对照组TC、TG水平均高于治疗前，且高于研究组（P < 0.05）；但研究组治疗前后TC、TG水平比较差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）；两组治疗前后HDL-C、LDL-C水平比较差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）。研究组代谢综合征发生率（2.8%）低于对照组（9.8%）（P < 0.05）。结论 儿童双相情感障碍采用非经典抗精神病药物联合心境稳定剂治疗对代谢指标水平影响较小，且疗效显著。