Autism Therapy: retrospective study

definition of retrospective study: Scientific study that collects information by asking people to remember details from the past. For example, a retrospective study of diet and autism would ask parents to remember what their children ate in the past time period that is being studied, for example, the last 6 months.

No Factsheets to Display

Melatonin in the Treatment of Chronic Sleep Disorders in Adults with Autism: A Retrospective Study
Swiss Med Weekly, by Galli-Carminati, G., Deriaz N., and Bertschy G., published in 2009, summarized Aug 5, 2010

Melatonin may be a safe and effective treatment for sleep disorders in adults with autism.

Sleep problems are common during the childhood of people with autism and often persist as the children age into adults. Some research suggests that these sleep problems are the result of people with autism not having enough melatonin in their body. This retrospective study describes the use of melatonin (3-9 mg each evening) to treat sleep problems in six adults with autism. The authors found that melatonin helped to both induce and maintain sleep. The authors did not observe any side effects in their patients.


Investigating the Use of Packing Therapy in Adolescents with Catatonia: A Retrospective Study
Clinical Neuropsychiatry, by Cohen, D., Nicoulaud L., Maturana A., and Danziger N., published in 2009, summarized Nov 30, 2009

Packing therapy may be helpful for people with autism who also have catatonia.

Catatonia is a condition that may include rigid muscles, and little or no response to other people. Packing therapy is a type of therapy that is usually provided by occupational therapists. The occupational therapist wraps the entire body of the child in damp cloths, leaving the head and face unwrapped. The therapist encourages the client to talk about what they are feeling while wrapped. This study tested 6 patients (13-17 years old) with catatonia who did not improve when treated with drug therapy. One patient also had autism, and another Asperger's syndrome. The authors said that packing therapy helped 4 out of the 6 patients, including the 2 with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The authors encourage therapists to consider packing therapy as an option.


A Retrospective Study of Memantine in Children and Adolescents with Pervasive Developmental Disorders
Psychopharmacology, by Erickson, CA, Posey DJ, Stigler KA, Mullett J., Katschke AR, and McDougle CJ, published in 2007, summarized Apr 26, 2007

The Alzheimer's drug memantine may help children with pervasive developmental disorder (PDD).

This study looked at whether or not the drug memantine was able to treat the core social/communication problems of children with PDD. The study included 18 children who were about 11 years old. Memantine therapy did seem to improve the inattention and social interactions in the children. Most children did not have many side effects from treatment with memantine. One child had a seizure disorder and the seizures seemed to get worse when the child was given memantine.


Improvement in Children with Autism Treated with Intravenous Gamma Globulin
Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine, by Boris, M., Goldblatt A., and Edelson SM, published in 2006, summarized Nov 22, 2006

Monthly treatment with intravenous gamma globulin (IVIG) may improve hyperactivity, inappropriate speech, irritability, lethargy, and stereotypy in children with autism.

This open retrospective study included 27 children with autism, who had failed to show improvement with dietary elimination of dairy and gluten, vitamin and mineral supplementation, and behavioral educational therapies. Previous studies have suggested that children with autism may have immunological disorders. The group of children in this study had many signs of an overly strong immune response including a high level of antibodies to myelin basic protein, thyroid, and DNA. IVIG is an approved immunological therapy that is considered to be safe for individuals with autoimmune diseases. The authors found that IVIG therapy for six months resulted in improvement in all measured aberrant behaviors.


Showing 4 results

TV Really Might Cause Autism

Oct 17, 2006

Gregg Easterbrook in Slate reports on a new Cornell study that shows a statistically significant relationship between autism rates and television watching by children under the age of 3. The retrospective study (available as a pdf) compares autism rates to the growth of cable television across counties, and also to weather, since children watch more television in bad weather. Please note that unlike the studies described in the Scientific Evidence portion of HealingThresholds.com, this Cornell study has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Read the original story .


Showing 1 results

No Comments to Display


Please comment on retrospective study or other autism therapy topics.

  • Factsheet
  • Research
  • News
  • Comments.
    • Share |