| When it comes to diagnosing autism, there are | | | | no inclination toward autism in children who have |
| many different factors that need to be | | | | only sensory integration disorder. |
| considered. This is because the autism spectrum | | | | Children with both disorders demonstrate |
| disorders have such a vast range of potential | | | | challenges with high-level tasks that involve the |
| symptoms and no two cases are alike. Therefore, | | | | integration of different areas of the brain. This |
| it is very easy to mistake autism for another | | | | can include emotional regulation as well as complex |
| condition. Among the most common mistakes | | | | sensory functions. However, the key to |
| when diagnosing autism is not understanding the | | | | diagnosing autism as opposed to sensory |
| difference between being on the spectrum, and | | | | integration disorder usually lies in the fact that |
| sensory integration disorder. | | | | autistic children experience greater problems in |
| This leads to the question of whether autism | | | | the areas of language, empathy, and social skills. |
| spectrum disorder and sensory integration | | | | Sensory integration disorder children do not |
| disorder (also known as sensory processing | | | | experience the same connective breakdowns for |
| disorder) are the same condition, or at the very | | | | controlling emotional empathy and social |
| least if they are related. Does one exclude the | | | | interaction. |
| other? To begin, they are considered to be | | | | In both disorders, children experience difficulties in |
| completely separate disorders, but to further | | | | tasks that require their brains to make |
| understand them, Dr. Lucy Jane Miller performed a | | | | long-distance connections, for example, between |
| study "Quantitative psychophysiologic evaluation | | | | the frontal lobes (which coordinate the activities |
| of Sensory Processing in children with autistic | | | | of the brain) and with the cerebellum (which |
| spectrum disorders", involving 40 high functioning | | | | regulates the perceptions and responses within |
| autism or Aspergers Syndrome children who | | | | the brain). |
| were tested for sensory integration disorder. | | | | If you think that your child may have one or both |
| Dr Miller's results showed 78 percent of the | | | | of these disorders, it is important to speak to |
| participating children also displayed notable signs of | | | | your child's pediatrician for autism diagnosing or |
| sensory integration disorder. While, 22 percent of | | | | identification of sensory integration disorder on its |
| the participants did not show signs. However, a | | | | own or in combination with autism. If autism or |
| secondary study by the same researchers, | | | | autism alongside sensory integration disorder is |
| "Relations among subtypes of Sensory Modulation | | | | the diagnosis, then you will be able to begin talking |
| Dysfunction" looked into children diagnosed with | | | | about the possible treatments available. These |
| sensory integration disorder and tested them to | | | | treatments can include various medications as well |
| see how many also had autism. Within that | | | | as alternative therapies and may overlap in terms |
| experiment, zero percent of the participants had | | | | of addressing aspects of both conditions |
| autism. The reason that this is interesting is that | | | | simultaneously. For example many children with |
| while children with autism can exist without having | | | | autism benefit from sensory integration therapies |
| sensory integration disorder, the majority show | | | | that also work well for children with sensory |
| signs of the condition. On the other hand, there is | | | | integration disorder. |