Risk factors and clinical correlates of sensory dysfunction in preschool children with and without autism spectrum disorder.
Lisa D Wiggins, Katie Overwyk, Julie Daniels and 9 others
PMID 38099402WHAT IT FOUND
A provider sensory diagnosis was reported in 23.7% of preschool children with autism, 8.6% with other developmental delay, and 0.8% of population controls.
Maternal anxiety during pregnancy and neonatal jaundice were associated with sensory diagnosis.
Key findings
01Caregivers reported a provider sensory diagnosis in 23.7% of preschool children with ASD, 8.6% of children with other DD, and 0.8% of population comparison children.
02In adjusted models, maternal anxiety during pregnancy and neonatal jaundice were significantly associated with sensory diagnosis in children with ASD and other DD.
03Sensory diagnosis was significantly, though subtly, correlated with anxiety problems, and attention or sleep problems were correlated with sensory diagnosis or at least one sensory symptom in ASD and DD.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The sensory outcome was caregiver report of a provider diagnosis, not a standardized sensory assessment of over-responsiveness, under-responsiveness, or sensory seeking. Specific ADI-R sensory symptoms, adaptive delays, and behavior problems were not systematically collected across all study groups and phases, so some comparisons are incomplete. Risk factors were retrospective caregiver reports, and assisted delivery and maternal alcohol use had too much missing data for logistic regression. The correlation analyses were unadjusted, so they show co-occurrence with anxiety, attention, sleep, and adaptive delay problems rather than independent associations. The study was observational and did not test interventions, so it cannot show that changing maternal anxiety or neonatal jaundice would reduce sensory dysfunction.
Declared interests
The SEED study was sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No author conflict-of-interest declaration is provided in the article text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that maternal anxiety during pregnancy or neonatal jaundice caused sensory dysfunction. The study was observational and reported associations, not tested interventions.