The effects of traditional Thai massage delivered by parents on stereotypical behaviors in children with autism: a pilot study
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Stereotypical behavior is one of the learning and social skills development problems that affect children with autism. Previous studies found that traditional Thai massage (TTM) could reduce stereotypical behaviors in autistic children. However, the effects of TTM delivered by the parents of autistic children have not been explored. This pilot study investigated the effects of TTM by parents on stereotypical behaviors in children with autism. A one-group pretest-posttest design was applied for 15 children, aged 4-16 years, with their parents' permissions. They participated in the study at the Special Education program of the Special Education Center of Khon Kaen University, Thailand. After being trained in a specialized TTM for children, the parents delivered 50-min TTM to children once a day, twice a week for eight weeks. The severity of autism and autistic behaviors were measured using Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS), and Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC), respectively. The functions of autonomic nervous systems were measured using Heart Rate Variability (HRV) to indicated physical and mental disorders such as stress. The data at baseline and the 8th week were analyzed using either an independent t-test or Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The study found that 16 sessions of TTM significantly improved measured data for autism in all children including the CARS (p<0.001), ATEC, speech/language/communication (p<0.001), sociability (p<0.001), sensory/cognitive awareness (p<0.001), health/physical/behavior (p< 0.001), and HRV (p<0.001). The results indicated that TTM performed by parents could be useful as an adjunct therapy for autistic children as it can reduce stereotypical behaviors and stress.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 5th ed. Washington: American Psychiatric Association; 2013.
Christensen DL, Braun K, Baio J, Bilder D, Charles J, Constantino JN, et al. Prevalence and characteristics of autism spectrum disorder among children aged 8 years - autism and developmental disabilities monitoring network, 11 sites, United States, 2012. MMWR Surveill Summ. 2018;65(13):1-23.
Kopetz PB, Endowed ED. Autism worldwide: prevalence, perceptions, acceptance, action. J Soc Sci. 2012;8(2):196-201.
Rapp JT, Vollmer TR, Peter C, Dozier CL, Cotnoir NM. Analysis of response allocation in individuals with multiple forms of stereotyped behavior. J Appl Behav Anal. 2004;37(4):481-501.
McEwen BS. Neurobiological and systemic effects of chronic stress. Chronic Stress. 2017;1:247054701769
doi:10.1177/2470547017692328
Piravej K, Tangtrongchitr P, Chandarasiri P, Paothong L, Sukprasong S. Effects of Thai traditional massage on autistic children's behavior. J Altern Complement Med. 2009;15(12):1355-1361.
Asadi Z, Shakibaei F, Mazaheri M, Jafari-Mianaei S. The effect of foot massage by mother on the severity of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms in children aged 6-12. Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2020;25(3):189-194.
Keeratitanont K, Jensen MP, Chatchawan U, Auvichayapat P. The efficacy of traditional Thai massage for the treatment of chronic pain: a systematic review. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2015;21(1):26-32.
Bennett S, Bennett MJ, Chatchawan U, Jenjaiwit P, Pantumethakul R, Kunhasura S, et al. Acute effects of traditional Thai massage on cortisol levels, arterial blood pressure and stress perception in academic stress condition: A single blind randomised controlled trial. J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2016;20(2):286-292.
Buttagat V, Eungpinichpong W, Kaber D, Chatchawan U, Arayawichanon P. Acute effects of traditional Thai massage on electroencephalogram in patients with scapulocostal syndrome. Complement Ther Med. 2012;20(4):167-174.
Sripongngam T, Eungpinichpong W. Effects of different duration of traditional Thai massage on parasympathetic nervous system. Int J Geomate. 2016;11(6):2883-2887.
Field T, Hernandez-Reif M, Diego M, Schanberg S, Kuhn C. Cortisol decreases and serotonin and dopamine increase following massage therapy. Int J Neurosci Int J Neurosci. 2005;115(10):1397-1413.
Field T, Lasko D, Mundy P, Henteleff T, Kabat S, Talpins S, et al. Brief report: autistic children's attentiveness and responsivity improve after touch therapy. J Autism Dev Disord. 1997;27(3):333-338.
Schopler E, Reichler RJ, DeVellis RF, Daly K. Toward objective classification of childhood autism: Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS). J Autism Dev Disord. 1980;10(1):91-103.
Rimland B, Edelson SM. Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) [cited 2021 Jan 20]. Available from: https://www.autism.org/autism-treatment-evaluation-checklist/.
Geier DA, Kern JK, Geier MR. A Comparison of the autism treatment evaluation checklist (ATEC) and the childhood autism rating scale (CARS) for the quantitative evaluation of autism. J Ment Health Res Intellect Disabil. 2013;6(4):255-267.
Sunakarach K, Kessomboon P. Validity and reliability of the Thai version of the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist: a two-phase diagnostic accuracy study. F1000research. 2018;7:1-8.
Anunciação PG, Polito M, Casonatto J. Blood pressure responses and heart rate variability after resistance exercise with different intensities and same workload: original. Clin Exp Hypertens. 2011;38(8):1-5.
Chen JL, Yeh DP, Lee JP, Chen CY, Huang CY, Lee SD, et al. Parasympathetic nervous activity mirrors recovery status in weightlifting performance after training. J Strength Cond Res. 2011;25(6):1546-1552.
Heart rate variability. Standards of measurement, physiological interpretation, and clinical use. Task Force of the European society of cardiology and the North American Society of pacing and electrophysiology. European Heart Journal. 1996;17(3):354-381.
Kangarlou M, Lot Kashani F, Vaziri S. Investigating the effects of parents training on decreasing behavioral problems of children suffering from attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Med Sci J. 2012;22:216-220.
Chen SC, Yu BY, Suen LK, Yu J, Ho FY, Yang JJ, et al. Massage therapy for the treatment of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Complement Ther Med. 2019;42:389-399.
Dane S, Welcome MO. A case study: effects of foot reflexotherapy on ADHD symptoms and enuresis nocturia in a child with ADHD and enuresis nocturia. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2018;33:139-141.
Sharif F, Zarei S, Shooshtari AA, Vossoughi M. The effect of stress management program using cognitive behavior approach on mental health of the mothers of the children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Iran J Pediatr. 2015;25(3):e474.
Lee MS, Kim JI, Ernst E. Massage therapy for children with autism spectrum disorders: a systematic review. J Clin Psychiatry. 2011;72(3):406-411.
Silva LMT, Schalock M, Ayres R, Bunse C, Budden S. Qigong massage treatment for sensory and self-regulation problems in young children with autism: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Occup Ther. 2009;63(4):423-432.
Zhou H, Zhang P. The effect of language therapy combined with point massage on communion disability in autism children. China Practical Med. 2008;3:24-26.
Schoormans D, Kop W, Kunst LE, Riem M. Oxytocin effects on resting-state heart rate variability in women: The role of childhood rearing experiences. Psychosom Med. 2020;82(3):252-258.
Diego MA, Field T, Sanders C, Hernandez-Reif M. Massage therapy of moderate and light pressure and vibrator effects on EEG and heart rate. Int J Neurosci Int J Neurosci. 2004;114(1):31-44.
Morhenn V, Beavin LE, Zak PJ. Massage increases oxytocin and reduces adrenocorticotropin hormone in humans. Altern Ther Health Med. 2012;18(6):11-18.