In particular , there is little evidence that the identified tools would be good at detecting change in intervention studies .
The obvious gaps in available outcome measurement include well-being and participation outcomes for children , and family quality -of-life outcomes , domains particularly valued by our informants ( young people with ASD and parents ) .
This is the first systematic review of the quality and appropriateness of tools design ed to monitor progress and outcomes of young children with ASD .
BACKGROUND The needs of children with autism spectrum disorder ( ASD ) are complex and this is reflected in the number and diversity of outcomes assessed and measurement tools used to collect evidence about children 's progress .
Relevant outcomes include improvement in core ASD impairments , such as communication , social awareness , sensory sensitivities and repetitiveness ; skills such as social functioning and play ; participation outcomes such as social inclusion ; and parent and family impact .
OBJECTIVES To examine the measurement properties of tools used to measure progress and outcomes in children with ASD up to the age of 6 years .
To identify outcome areas regarded as important by people with ASD and parents .
A two-year prospective follow-up study of community-based early intensive behavioural intervention and specialist nursery provision for children with autism spectrum disorders.
BACKGROUND This prospect i ve study compared outcome for pre-school children with autism spectrum disorders ( ASD ) receiving autism-specific nursery provision or home-based Early Intensive Behavioural Interventions ( EIBI ) in a community setting . METHODS Forty-four 23- to 53-month-old children with ASD participated ( 28 in EIBI home-based programmes ; 16 in autism-specific nurseries ) . Cognitive , language , play , adaptive behaviour skills and severity of autism were assessed at intake and 2 years later . RESULTS Both groups showed improvements in age equivalent scores but st and ard scores changed little over time . At follow-up , there were no significant group differences in cognitive ability , language , play or severity of autism . The only difference approaching significance ( p = .06 ) , in favour of the EIBI group , was for Vinel and Daily Living Skills st and ard scores . However , there were large individual differences in progress , with intake IQ and language level best predicting overall progress . CONCLUSIONS Home-based EIBI , as implemented in the community , and autism-specific nursery provision produced comparable outcomes after two years of intervention
In particular , there is little evidence that the identified tools would be good at detecting change in intervention studies .
The obvious gaps in available outcome measurement include well-being and participation outcomes for children , and family quality -of-life outcomes , domains particularly valued by our informants ( young people with ASD and parents ) .
This is the first systematic review of the quality and appropriateness of tools design ed to monitor progress and outcomes of young children with ASD .
BACKGROUND The needs of children with autism spectrum disorder ( ASD ) are complex and this is reflected in the number and diversity of outcomes assessed and measurement tools used to collect evidence about children 's progress .
Relevant outcomes include improvement in core ASD impairments , such as communication , social awareness , sensory sensitivities and repetitiveness ; skills such as social functioning and play ; participation outcomes such as social inclusion ; and parent and family impact .
OBJECTIVES To examine the measurement properties of tools used to measure progress and outcomes in children with ASD up to the age of 6 years .
To identify outcome areas regarded as important by people with ASD and parents .