The Impact of COVID-19 on the Adaptive Functioning, Behavioral Problems, and Repetitive Behaviors of Italian Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Observational Study.

ABSTRACT: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families have represented a fragile population on which the extreme circumstances of the COVID-19 outbreak may have doubly impaired. Interruption of therapeutical interventions delivered in-person and routine disruption constituted some of the main challenges they had to face. This study investigated the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on adaptive functioning, behavioral problems, and repetitive behaviors of children with ASD. In a sample of 85 Italian ASD children (mean age 7 years old; 68 males, 17 females), through a comparison with a baseline evaluation performed during the months preceding COVID-19, we evaluated whether after the compulsory home confinement any improvement or worsening was reported by parents of ASD individuals us

SUBMITTER: Siracusano M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7913091 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature