Autism Animal Assisted Therapy: Therapy Dog Video

In study after study, animal-assisted therapy has proven to be a valid tool in helping children with autism and other developmental disabilities build a new sense of self-confidence. Animal-assisted therapy has been shown to counteract isolation and facilitate socialization. In this 20-minute video, split up in 5 parts, one little boy builds a relationship with a therapy dog and learns about purpose and compassion.

Animal Assisted Therapy: Video 1 of 5


Animal Assisted Therapy: Video 2 of 5


Animal Assisted Therapy: Video 3 of 5


Animal Assisted Therapy: Video 4 of 5


Animal Assisted Therapy: Video 5 of 5

AIT Crapola?

The Ethics of selling AIT (Source: Autism Street)

Auditory Integration Training
“Improving the Lives and Learning of Children…in only 10 Days”
-From the header of the AIT Institute’s web page

Readers may or may not have had the patience to read through my entire conversation with the AIT lady here in Phoenix. Let’s just say she provides nothing more than anecdotes and appeals to emotion in an attempt to justify her apparent “taking advantage” of the AZ DES/DDD current practice that allows payment of, what most people would call, “absurd” fees (Three and a half months of real weekly speech language therapy - 25 hours, in exchange for 10 hours of AIT). She apparently really “believes” in what she’s doing. I would encourage any parents who are considering AIT for their child with autism to go back and read the conversation (and the comments which include mention of the EASe CD series), and decide for yourself.

I concluded that “The conversation is telling enough, but what does it mean? Parents are bombarded by this kind of crapola non-stop. It is the responsibility of the parents to learn how to become good decision makers on behalf of their children. But could it be, that part of this situation is a social irresponsibity on the part of so-called providers? I think so. Now I will not say that purveyors of potential autism quackery do so purposefully, but I will say that being clueless, making decisions that affect other people’s children based on anecdotes alone, sure seems less than ethical to me.”

[FULL STORY @ AutismStreet]

Auditory Integration Training (AIT)

From Wikipedia ...

Auditory integration training (AIT) attempts to treat auditory processing disorders by helping an individual make the most use of his or her residual hearing and better understand speech and sounds. It typically involves 20 half-hour sessions of listening to specially modulated music over a 10- to 20-day period. The program was pioneered by Guy Berard.^[1] Several claims have been made for it, including claims that it can greatly benefit those with autism.^[2]

AIT does not meet scientific standards for efficacy and safety. The American Academy of Pediatrics and other professional organizations consider it to be an experimental procedure, and the New York Department of Health recommends that it not be used to treat young children with autism.^[3] The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has banned the audiokinetron, the device used to perform AIT, from importation into the U.S. due to lack of evidence of medical benefit.^[1]

Training regimen

Auditory integration training (AIT) aims to address the sensory problems such as hearing distortions, hyper-acute hearing, and sensory processing anomalies, which are said to cause discomfort and confusion in persons suffering from learning disabilities, including autism spectrum disorders. These hypersensitivities are believed to interfere with a child’s attention, comprehension, and ability to learn.

The training typically involves the child attending two 30-minute sessions per day for ten days. The child listens via headphones to a program of specially altered music. Sessions often start off with music and sounds that are familiar to the client, so they are easily recognizable. Then, gradually throughout the sessions the music and sounds become more technical and harder to discriminate. The program is modified for each child with certain frequencies of sound filtered using an electronic device called an audiokinetron, which randomly clips frequencies above or below 1 kHz for random durations between 1/4 and 2 seconds, and which filters out frequencies the child has been determined to be unusually sensitive to.^[1]

Lack of evidence

A systematic review of randomized controlled trials of AIT found insufficient evidence to support its use; no significant adverse effects were reported.^[4]