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. 2024 Aug 22;16(1):176.
doi: 10.1186/s13102-024-00957-8.

Recreational ball games are effective in improving social communication impairments among preschoolers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder: a multi-arm controlled study

Kai Qi  1 , Yufei Liu  1 , Zuopeng Wang  2 , Xuan Xiong  3 , Kelong Cai  4 , Yifan Xu  1 , Yifan Shi  4 , Zhiyuan Sun  4 , Xiaoxiao Dong  4 , Aiguo Chen  5
Affiliations

Recreational ball games are effective in improving social communication impairments among preschoolers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder: a multi-arm controlled study

Kai Qi et al. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. .

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to compare the effects of two 12-week training intervention experimental ball games combined with standard behavioral rehabilitation against a control group solely utilizing standard behavioral rehabilitation on social communication impairments (SCI) in preschool children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Methods: A multi-arm controlled study design was implemented, involving 41 children diagnosed with ASD (mean age: 4.99 ± 0.76 years). 41 participants were randomized assigned to two experimental groups and a control group, The experimental group carried out ball combination training program group (BCTP) and mini-basketball training program group (MBTP) on the basis of routine behavioral rehabilitation, which underwent 12-week training interventions 5 times a week. The control group (n = 14) received only standard behavioral rehabilitation. Evaluations were conducted before and after interventions using the Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition (SRS-2).

Results: The results suggest that both 12-week interventions, BCTP, and MBTP, led to significant improvements in social communication impairment among children with ASD (p < 0.05). Despite enhancing the overall scores on the SRS-2, these interventions displayed varying impacts across different sub-dimensions. BCTP primarily exhibited significant enhancements in social awareness and behavior pattern (p < 0.05), whereas MBTP significantly improved social cognition and social communication (p < 0.05). Both interventions showed slight improvements in social motivation.

Conclusions: The utilization of recreational ball games has showed to be effective in decreasing the impairment levels of children with ASD, while the control group experienced a worsening of outcomes. This suggests that irrespective of the specific ball game strategy employed, both can be employed on a weekly basis to complement standard behavioral rehabilitation and enhance the ability to improve the quality of life for children diagnosed with ASD.

Trial registration: The trial is retrospectively registered on the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR1900024973;August 5, 2019).

Keywords: Autism spectrum disorder; Child; Exercise therapies; Social Communication Impairment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Participant flow characteristics. * Twenty-two children’s parents did not finish the assessment in the post-test
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Goal and duration of intervention for the three stages of BCTP and MBTP
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
BCTP and MBTP single intervention procedure
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Performances for SRS-2 subscales at particular time points and for three groups. * p < 0.05
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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