An Interoception- Based Intervention for Improving Emotional Regulation in Children in a Special Education Classroom: Feasibility Study.

Interoception supports the ability to notice, interpret, and react to internal sensations and impacts emotional regulation and participation in meaningful activities. This study aimed to expand evidence regarding the efficacy of a 7-week intervention based on The Interoception Curriculum: A Guide to Developing Mindful Self-Regulation in improving interoception and emotional regulation. We purposefully sampled middle-school participants (N = 9) with several diagnoses from a special education classroom. Self-report and teacher-report measures on interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation were collected before and after implementation of the interoception intervention. Statistically significant correlations were seen between the interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation and improvements in interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation were found following the intervention. In a small one group pretest/post-test design, a seven-week intervention based on the interoception curriculum demonstrated feasibility of this approach for children in a special education classroom and outcomes showed that interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation could improve after participation in this intervention.

Effectiveness of Robotics in Stroke Rehabilitation to Accelerate Upper Extremity Function: Systematic Review.

Objective: To examine the effectiveness of robot-assisted therapy (RAT) combined with conventional therapy (CT) compared to CT alone in accelerating upper extremity (UE) recovery poststroke. Data Sources. We searched five databases: Ovid, MEDLINE, CINAHL, PubMed, and Scopus Study Selection. Studies were selected for this review using the following inclusion criteria: randomized controlled trials of adults, RAT combined with CT compared to CT, and Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) as an outcome measure. Studies focused on children with neurological impairments, and studies that used RAT to facilitate lower extremity recovery and/or improve gait were excluded. Data Extraction. The initial search yielded 3,019 citations of articles published between January 2011 and May 2021. Fourteen articles met the inclusion criteria. Randomization, allocation sequence concealment, blinding, and other biases were assessed. Data Synthesis. Current evidence suggests that the use of RAT along with CT may accelerate upper extremity recovery, measured by FMA, in the beginning of rehabilitation. However, the progress fades over time. More empirical research is needed to validate this observation. Also, the findings related to cost-benefit analyses of RAT are inconclusive. Conclusions: It is unclear whether RAT accelerates UE recovery poststroke when used in conjunction with conventional therapy. Given the capital and maintenance costs involved in developing and delivering RAT, more controlled studies examining the effectiveness and cost-benefit analysis of RAT are needed before it can be used widely. This trial is registered with CRD42021270824.

Relationship between Emotional Support for Parents and Autistic Children's Participation in Social and Physical Activities.

The purpose of this study was to determine if parents receiving emotional support is positively correlated with children's participation in physical and social activities and if such a correlation exists between parental emotional support in children labeled as autistic. Data were drawn from 30,501 children aged 6 to 17 years in the 2020 National Survey of Children's Health database and analyzed using a retrospective cross-sectional approach based on multivariate linear regression models. Results showed parental emotional support was statistically significantly correlated with children's physical and social activity in the total sample but was not significant for the emotional support of parents with autistic children. The findings suggest that other issues must be considered as contributing factors for parents of autistic children in relation to social and physical activity participation.

Predictors of Participation Difficulties in Autistic Children.

IMPORTANCE: Participation in meaningful occupations supports quality of life and health. Because quality of life is lower in autistic children than in children without this diagnosis, it is important to consider aspects contributing to the participation difficulties this population experiences. OBJECTIVE: To identify predictors of participation difficulties in a large data set from autistic children to inform professionals about potential intervention targets. DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional design using a large data set with multivariate regression models for home life, friendships, classroom learning, and leisure activities. SETTING: 2011 Survey of Pathways to Diagnosis and Services data set. PARTICIPANTS: Parents or caregivers of 834 autistic children with co-occurring intellectual disability (ID) and 227 autistic children with no ID. RESULTS: The strongest participation predictors within the scope of occupational therapy practice were sensory processing, emotional regulation, behavioral variables, and social variables. Our results are consistent with those of smaller previous studies and indicate the importance of addressing these areas in occupational therapy intervention in line with client priorities. CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: Focusing interventions with autistic children on sensory processing, emotional regulation, behavioral skills, and social skills to address their underlying neurological processing can support their increased participation in home life, friendships, classroom learning, and leisure activities. What This Article Adds: Our findings support a focus in occupational therapy interventions on sensory processing and social skills to increase activity participation in autistic children with and without ID. Emotional regulation and behavioral skills can be supported by interventions that target cognitive flexibility. Positionality Statement: This article uses the identity-first language autistic people. This nonableist language describes their strengths and abilities and is a conscious decision. This language is favored by autistic communities and self-advocates and has been adopted by health care professionals and researchers (Bottema-Beutel et al., 2021; Kenny et al., 2016).

Autism and Mental Health: The Role of Occupational Therapy.

Research has indicated a high prevalence of mental health problems among autistic people, with elevated rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidality. The profession of occupational therapy has its roots in mental health and can offer a unique focus on occupation to support the mental health needs of autistic clients. In this Guest Editorial we introduce articles for this special issue of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy related to autism and mental health and use the Person-Environment-Occupation Model. The articles offer insights into how interactions among person, environment, and occupation factors affect the mental health of autistic populations and demonstrate ways that mental health can be supported through occupational engagement. Opportunities to support the mental health of autistic people include promoting engagement in meaningful activities, supporting individual strengths, and bolstering clients' sense of self and identification with their autistic identity. Future research is needed to uncover and test interventions to support autistic clients and should reflect cultural humility and participatory approaches. We chose to use identity-first language (rather than person-first language) to describe the autistic community in this Guest Editorial out of respect for common community member preferences and in accordance with recommendations for anti-ableist language use (Bottema-Beutel et al., 2021). Decisions about language for each article in this special issue were made by the respective authors.

Demonstration of the Yonsei-Social Play Evaluation Tool Keyforms for Occupational Therapy Practice.

Play is regarded as a child's primary occupation and provides valuable information about the child's abilities. Thus, informative assessment tools of play skills are critical for establishing play-related treatment goals in occupational therapy. The objective of this study is to present a practical method for occupational therapists to develop intervention goals using the Yonsei-Social Play Evaluation Tool (Y-SPET) keyforms. Parent responses (n = 310) for preschool children (three to six years old) who did not have a medical diagnosis were examined. The Rasch measurement model was used to create keyforms for the Y-SPET. All children's raw scores were converted into individual Rasch-calibrated logit scores and standard errors were estimated to establish logically attainable treatment goals. Results showed use of the keyforms could logically identify the intervention goals of the children's social play. This suggests that the Y-SPET keyforms are helpful for assessing the level of children's social play and establishing practical treatment goals.

The effectiveness of nontraditional or home-based programing on ADL performance of individuals living with multiple sclerosis: A systematic review.

PURPOSE: To examine evidence-based nontraditional and home-based interventions and their efficacy for use in individuals with MS to improve performance in their daily activities. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A search of five databases including PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, OT Seeker, and Ovid Medline produced 924 research articles. Thirty-two articles were selected for full-text review, of which 15 were included in this systematic review. INCLUSION CRITERIA: Articles were level 2B or higher evidence, had a minimum of 19 participants with MS, addressed ADLs or body functions supporting ADL performance, and were published since 2010. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: Articles not written in English and not identified as nontraditional or home-based programming. RESULTS: The review uncovered strong evidence for the use of the nontraditional interventions of vestibular rehabilitation, self-management, yoga, musical production, and ELEVIDA to improve ADL performance in individuals with MS. Strong evidence supported the use of home-based programs that included cognitive behavioral therapy, cooling suits, manual dexterity, strengthening, vestibular rehabilitation, and physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: High levels of evidence support the use of nontraditional or home-based interventions to improve ADL performance in clients with MS. Innovation and technology continue to expand the occupational therapist's toolbox of interventions.

Characteristics of Early Interventions for Pain and Function Following Lower Extremity Joint Replacement: Systematic Review.

Occupational therapy is beneficial among adults with chronic pain; however, occupational therapy interventions addressing earlier phases of pain have not been clearly explicated. This systematic review characterized acute and subacute interventions billable by occupational therapy after hip or knee replacement to improve pain and function. Seven articles met inclusion criteria. Six articles had a low risk of bias. Three intervention types were found: task-oriented exercise, water-based, and modalities. Only task-oriented interventions improved both pain and function one-year after surgery. There are long-term benefits to early task-oriented exercise. Further research is needed to contextualize occupational therapy's role in early pain interventions.

Art Interventions for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Scoping Review.

IMPORTANCE: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological condition characterized by impairments in social interaction, communication, and behavior. Occupational therapy practitioners use creative arts interventions for children with ASD, but relevant evidence for these interventions is lacking. OBJECTIVE: To provide occupational therapists evidence of the benefit of creative arts interventions for children with ASD by evaluating treatment efficacy and connecting the evidence with the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework: Domain and Process (4th ed.; OTPF-4). DATA SOURCES: We searched peer-reviewed articles in six databases: CINAHL, Cochrane, PubMed, Ovid, PsycInfo, and Scopus. Eighteen articles published between 2000 and 2020 met Level 1b or 2b evidence criteria and were retrieved for full review; 15 were included in this scoping review. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA COLLECTION: We used Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to extract data. Inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) Level 1b or 2b study; (2) quantitative data; (3) published in English; (4) population of children (ages <18 yr); (5) primary diagnosis of ASD; and (6) creative arts intervention in the forms of drawing, painting, or coloring; music; or theater. FINDINGS: Creative arts interventions benefited children with ASD in two OTPF-4 areas (process and social interaction) pertaining to the Performance Skills domain and one OTPF-4 area (body functions) pertaining to the Client Factors domain. We found similar effects for group and individual intervention sessions, and significant improvements required multiple sessions. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Our findings provide evidence for the efficacy of creative arts interventions to enhance occupation-based outcomes for children with ASD. What This Article Adds: Our findings support occupational therapy practitioners' use of creative arts interventions to improve OTPF-4-based client factors and process and social interaction skills for children with ASD.

Impact of Event Scale-6 (IES-6) for U.S. adults who experienced the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 pandemic causes psychological problems such as stress. It is important to accurately identify the level of stress and establish effective intervention. The Impact of Event Scale-6 (IES-6) is widely used for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) screening by measuring the level of subjective stress, but there has been no research on its psychometric properties with individuals who experienced the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A random sample of 600 participants were randomly selected from a COVID-19 survey database (n = 6391). Rasch analysis was conducted to examine item fit, rating scale structure, construct validity, differential item functioning (DIF), and precision of the IES-6. RESULTS: The principal component analysis of Rasch residuals (54.1% of the raw variance explained) and the average of residual correlations (average r = .19) supported the unidimensionality structure in the IES-6. The rating scale was suitable, and the item difficulty hierarchy was logical. The item fit and the DIF contrast were acceptable, except for item 5. The IES-6's person reliability was .76, which was also an acceptable level. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that the IES-6 has acceptable item-level psychometrics for screening the stress level in adults in the United States for individuals who have experienced the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings suggested that the IES-6 would be useful for the rapid identification of the high-level stressand allow clinicians to quickly provide interventions for people with the COVID-19 related stress and their families.

Impact of an Interoception-Based Program on Emotion Regulation in Autistic Children.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of a 25-week school-based intervention and its ability to improve interoception and emotion regulation in an autistic pediatric population. Method: One-group pre- and posttest design implementing The Interoception Curriculum: A Guide to Developing Mindful Self-Regulation in a self-contained school. Participants were 14 (11 male, 3 female) students between 9 and 19 years old. The Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function 2 (BRIEF-2) and the Caregiver Questionnaire for Interoceptive Awareness-2nd Edition (CQIA-2) were used to determine changes in interoceptive awareness and emotion regulation. Results: Statistically significant improvements were found between the preintervention and postintervention scores for both interoceptive awareness and emotion regulation. Conclusion: This was the first study to examine the Interoception Curriculum in its entirety, providing evidence that the use of the Interoception Curriculum is feasible in a school setting and suggests that this intervention is effective for improvement of interoception. Findings also suggest that this improvement in interoception is related to improvement in emotional regulation for an autistic pediatric population.

Development of a physical function outcome measure to harmonize comparisons between three Asian adult populations.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to use modern measurement techniques and create a precise functional status metric for Asian adults. METHODS: The study subjects included Asian American adults from the 2012 Health and Retirement Study (n = 211), Chinese adults in the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (n = 13,649), and Korean adults in the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging (n = 7,486). The Rasch common-item equating method with nine self-care and mobility items from the three databases were used to create a physical function measure across the three Asian adult populations. RESULTS: The created physical function measure included 23 self-care and mobility tasks and demonstrated acceptable psychometric properties (unidimensional, local independence, no misfit, no differential item functioning). A significant group difference in the estimated physical function across the three Asian adult populations ([Formula: see text] = 445.21, p < 0.0001) was identified. The American Asian adults (5.16 logits) had better physical function compared to the Chinese (4.15 logits) and Korean adults (3.32 logits). CONCLUSION: Since the outcome measure was calibrated with the population-representative Asian samples, this derived physical function measure can be used for cross-national comparisons between the three countries. Using this precise functional status metric can help to identify factors that influence health outcomes in other Asian countries (China and Korea). This has the potential to generate numerous benefits, such as international disability monitoring and health-related policy development, improved shared decision making, and international syntheses of research findings.

Effects of Dry Needling on Spasticity and Range of Motion: A Systematic Review.

IMPORTANCE: This systematic review summarizes existing studies on dry needling for spasticity and range of motion (ROM) and discusses its potential for use as an occupational therapy intervention. OBJECTIVE: To examine existing studies on the effects of dry needling on spasticity and ROM. DATA SOURCES: Article citations and abstracts from Scopus, Cochrane Library, PubMed, CINAHL, and a university library search. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA COLLECTION: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were used in abstracting data. Peer-reviewed journal articles published in English between January 2007 and June 2019 were searched. Of 270 identified studies, 10 met the inclusion criteria. Studies were divided into categories on the basis of outcome measures (Modified Modified Ashworth Scale and ROM). Pain outcome measures were excluded because a systematic review addressing this outcome has recently been completed. FINDINGS: Strong evidence was found to support the use of dry needling to decrease spasticity and increase ROM. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This systematic review suggests that dry needling is an effective physical agent modality to decrease spasticity and increase ROM, both of which are potentially beneficial to functional outcomes. WHAT THIS ARTICLE ADDS: This article provides information that may be helpful in determining the appropriateness of dry needling as an occupational therapy intervention.

Participation Difficulties in Autism Spectrum Disorders and Intellectual Disabilities: Findings from the 2011 Survey of Pathway to Diagnosis and Services.

Greater understanding can increase our knowledge and intervention effectiveness for activity participation problems of children with disabilities. We examined participation difficulties of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and intellectual disabilities (ID) in the 2011 Survey of Pathway to Diagnosis and Services. We utilized propensity score matching with inverse probability of treatment weight with questions from parents of 1783 children aged 6-17 years. Friendship was the most difficult area for all children. Children with both ASD and ID experienced the most difficulty in all areas, followed by ASD alone. Reported levels of home life, friendships, classroom and leisure difficulties were moderately correlated for all children. Children who were previously diagnosed, but have no current diagnosis experienced substantial difficulties.

Effectiveness of Social Skills Interventions Incorporating Peer Interactions for Children With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review.

IMPORTANCE: Few studies examining the use of peers during interventions have been published, and no systematic review has been conducted to evaluate the available literature. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness of social skills interventions incorporating peers for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to improve social interactions. DATA SOURCES: A search of five databases (CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and PsycINFO) produced 697 articles. Sixty-one were retrieved for full-text review, and 15 articles met inclusion criteria. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA COLLECTION: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were used to abstract data. Inclusion criteria: Participants younger than age 18 yr with any ADHD pattern, social skills interventions with peer involvement, outcome measures within the domain of occupational therapy, written in English, and involved a peer as the sole or primary component at some point in the social skills intervention. Exclusion criteria: Studies older than 20 yr or that used participants with comorbidities or multiple conditions. FINDINGS: Interventions incorporating both peer categories were effective for increasing play skills, reducing undesirable social behaviors (e.g., inappropriate verbalizations, dominant behaviors, aggression), and improving communication (e.g., pragmatic language, collaboration, joint participation) and social participation. Improvements were maintained over time, as evidenced by follow-up studies. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Outcomes of these studies demonstrate moderate evidence that supports the use of social skills interventions incorporating peers for children with ADHD to improve social interactions, supporting their use by occupational therapists and the need for more studies. WHAT THIS ARTICLE ADDS: This article provides guidance to occupational therapy practitioners on social skills intervention options for children with ADHD.

Flourishing in children with autism spectrum disorders.

Flourishing is an indicator of positive mental health and is important for children's development and well-being. We used variables from the National Survey of Children's Health 2016 as indicators of flourishing (difficulty making friends, is bullied, bullies others, shares ideas with family, argues, finishes tasks, does all homework, shows curiosity, stays calm, and cares about doing well in school) to compare differences in parent perceptions of their children with and without autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We anticipate that these findings will help identify intervention targets to support the well-being of individuals with ASD. Children between 6 and 17 years of age, without intellectual disability, brain injury, cerebral palsy, or Down syndrome were included. Total participants were 34,171 controls (male/female = 17,116/17,155) and 812 with ASD (male/female = 668/144). Factor analysis resulted in three-factor structures (social competence, behavioral control, and school motivation) with good model fit (root mean square error of approximation = 0.08, comparative fit index = 0.92, Tucker-Lewis index = 0.89). The multivariate regression model and propensity score with inverse probability of treatment weighting (PS-IPTW) method revealed that children with ASD had lower scores in the social competence and behavioral control factors compared to the control group (all P < 0.05). However, no significant differences were found in the school motivation factor between the two groups (P > 0.05) in both multivariate regression model and PS-IPTW method. Findings suggest that social competence and behavioral control are indicators of flourishing and are important intervention targets to increase flourishing among children with ASD. Autism Res 2019, 12: 952-966. © 2019 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. LAY SUMMARY: Flourishing is an indicator of positive mental health and is important for children's development and well-being. We used variables from The National Survey of Children's Health 2016 to examine differences in parent perceptions of the indicators of flourishing (difficulty making friends, is bullied, bullies others, shares ideas with family, argues, finishes tasks, does all homework, shows curiosity, stays calm, and cares about doing well in school) between children with and without autism spectrum disorders (ASD). We anticipate that this information will help to identify therapeutic targets to support the well-being of individuals with ASD. Children between 6 and 17 years old, without intellectual disability (ID), brain injury (BI), cerebral palsy (CP), or Down syndrome (DS) were included. From the total (N = 50,212), we excluded children under age 6 (n = 14,494), those who once, but do not currently have ASD (n = 81), and those with ID (n = 432), BI (n = 170), CP (n = 35), and DS (n = 17), resulting in 34,983 records used. Total participants, age 6-17 years, were 34,171 controls (male/female = 17,116/17,155) and 812 with ASD (male/female = 668/144). Factor analysis resulted in the identification of three flourishing categories among the indicator variables (social competence, behavioral control, and school motivation). Children with ASD had lower scores in the social competence and behavioral control factors compared to the control group. However, there were no significant differences in the school motivation factor between the two groups. Findings suggest that social competence and behavioral control are indicators of flourishing and are important intervention targets to increase flourishing among children with ASD.

Systematic Review of Yoga and Balance: Effect on Adults With Neuromuscular Impairment.

This systematic review examines the efficacy of yoga as a neuromuscular intervention for community-dwelling populations at risk for falls to determine its utility for use in occupational therapy intervention. Populations included older adults and adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI), cerebrovascular accident (CVA), dementia and Alzheimer's disease (AD)-type dementia, multiple sclerosis (MS), and Parkinson's disease (PD). Benefits of yoga include improved posture control, improved flexibility of mind and body, relaxation, and decreased anxiety and stress. A systematic review of the literature was conducted to understand the salutary benefits of yoga for clients who are at risk for falls because of neuromuscular issues. Moderate evidence supports the use of yoga to decrease the risk for falls for community-dwelling older adults and people with CVA, dementia and AD-type dementia, and MS. Studies involving people with TBI and PD did not include strong enough evidence to be able to make a clear classification.

Leisure Participation Patterns for School Age Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Findings from the 2016 National Survey of Children's Health.

Leisure activity participation is important for health and well-being. This study examined similarities and differences between typically developing children and those with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) from 6 to 17 years old in physical, recreational, social, skill, and jobs/chores activities from a large national database. Findings revealed that children with ASD had significantly lower participation levels than those without ASD between 11 and 17 years old. They suggest an increasing disparity among many types of leisure participation for children and youth with ASD as they age, eventually leading to limited participation in adult activities. They reinforce the importance of intervention at an early age to increase participation in these activities to promote development of skills that contribute to adult competencies.

Sensory processing disorder in preterm infants during early childhood and relationships to early neurobehavior.

BACKGROUND: Preterm infants are exposed to a variety of sensory stimuli that they are not developmentally prepared to handle, which puts them at risk for developing a sensory processing disorder. However, the patterns and predictors of sensory processing disorder and their relationship to early behavior at term equivalent age are poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: The aims of the study are to: 1) describe the incidence of sensory processing disorder in preterm infants at four to six years of age, 2) define medical and sociodemographic factors that relate to sensory processing disorder, and 3) explore relationships between early neurobehavior at term equivalent age and sensory processing disorder at age four to six years. METHODS: This study was a prospective longitudinal design. Thirty-two preterm infants born ≤30weeks gestation were enrolled. Infants had standardized neurobehavioral testing at term equivalent age with the NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale. At four to six years of age, participants were assessed with the Sensory Processing Assessment for Young Children (SPA). RESULTS: Sixteen children (50%) had at least one abnormal score on the SPA, indicating a sensory processing disorder. There were no identified relationships between medical and sociodemographic factors and sensory processing disorder. More sub-optimal reflexes (p=0.04) and more signs of stress (p=0.02) at term equivalent age were related to having a sensory processing disorder in early childhood. CONCLUSION: Preterm infants are at an increased risk for developing a sensory processing disorder. Medical and sociodemographic factors related to sensory processing disorder could not be isolated in this study, however relationships between sensory processing disorder and early neurobehavior were identified.

Sensory Responsiveness in Siblings of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

This study examined sensory responsiveness in unaffected siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and associations between sensory responsiveness and social severity. Sensory Profile Caregiver Questionnaires and Social Responsiveness Scales were completed by parents of 185 children between age 4 and 10.95 years. Significant differences were found between participants with ASD and controls, and between participants with ASD and unaffected siblings for all sensory quadrants and domains, but not between controls and unaffected siblings. Social responsiveness scores were significantly correlated with scores from most sensory profile categories. Sensory responsiveness as an endophenotype of ASD is not indicated from these findings; however, studies with larger numbers of unaffected siblings and controls are needed to confirm the null hypothesis.