Abstract
Background: In Italy, there is a lack of reliable data on the epidemiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) on a national scale. The exact etiopathogenesis of ASDs is still largely unknown, with autism representing the final common pathway of different pathological conditions. Aim of the Study: Assessment of the effects produced by the individualised, intensive and holistic rehabilitation programme used by the Il Cireneo Foundation on the daily living skills of people diagnosed with ASD. Materials and Methods: Out of the eighty-seven (n = 87) enrolees, seventy-nine (n = 79), of whom 19 were females (24.1%) and 60 were males (75.9%), with a mean age of 13.41 years (SD = 6.93 years; range = 2 - 33 years) terminated the three-year study. The enrolees were evaluated two times: at the beginning of the rehabilitation programme and at the end of the three-year goal-oriented project. Results: Statistically significant results between T0 and T1 were recorded for CARS (t-4.221; p < 0.05) and for the domains of Communication (t-2.750; p < 0.05), Daily Living Skills (t-6.526; p < 0.05) and Motor Skills (t-3.524; p < 0.05) of the VABS. Conclusions: People diagnosed with autism can be helped to become more autonomous and independent in carrying out activities of daily living thanks to an intensive psycho-educational and cognitive-behavioural rehabilitation programme, of which the Il Cireneo Foundation is the only expression in the Abruzzo region.
Highlights
In Italy, there is a lack of reliable data on the epidemiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) on a national scale
Aim of the Study: Assessment of the effects produced by the individualised, intensive and holistic rehabilitation programme used by the Il Cireneo Foundation on the daily living skills of people diagnosed with ASD
People diagnosed with autism can be helped to become more autonomous and independent in carrying out activities of daily living thanks to an intensive psycho-educational and cognitive-behavioural rehabilitation programme, of which the Il Cireneo Foundation is the only expression in the Abruzzo region
Summary
In Italy, there is a lack of reliable data on the epidemiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) on a national scale. The deficiencies in terms of legislation, regulations and policies on autism were reducing the existence of their children to institutional nothingness, based on the wrong belief that people affected by this “disorder” are irrecoverable, the total absence of pathways of and rights to health care, rehabilitation, and an accurate diagnosis This further motivated the Foundation which directed its efforts towards several initiatives and projects, mostly funded by public and private institutions and carried out with the support of volunteers, fixed-term workers and freelance professionals—that is all the tools normally available to the non-profit sector and to those who strive to bridge institutional gaps— creating windows of opportunity for children and adolescents affected by autism spectrum disorders. The project, titled Progetto regionale sperimentale per la riabilitazione ed il trattamento dell’autismo e del disturbo generalizzato dello sviluppo nell’ambito dell’assistenza prevista nella casa della salute (Regional pilot project for the rehabilitation and treatment of autism and pervasive developmental disorders within the health centre-based primary care model), lasted three years, from 2010 to 2013
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