Sharing Our World: Impact of Group Motor Skill Learning on Joint Attention in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
J Autism Dev Disord
; 2024 Sep 04.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39230782
ABSTRACT
Impaired joint attention is a common feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), affecting social interaction and communication. We explored if group basketball learning could enhance joint attention in autistic children, and how this relates to brain changes, particularly white matter development integrity. Forty-nine autistic children, aged 4-12 years, were recruited from special education centers. The experimental group underwent a 12-week basketball motor skill learning, while the control group received standard care. Eye-tracking and brain scans were conducted. The 12-week basketball motor skill learning improved joint attention in the experimental group, evidenced by better eye tracking metrics and enhanced white matter integrity. Moreover, reduced time to first fixation correlated positively with decreased mean diffusivity of the left superior corona radiata and left superior fronto-occipital fasciculus in the experimental group. Basketball-based motor skill intervention effectively improved joint attention in autistic children. Improved white matter fiber integrity related to sensory perception, spatial and early attention function may underlie this effect. These findings highlight the potential of group motor skill learning within clinical rehabilitation for treating ASD.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Language:
En
Journal:
J Autism Dev Disord
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
China
Country of publication:
Estados Unidos