Early Neurodivergent Developmental Trajectories in Autism and in Response to the ESDM Intervention

Summary

Early support is thought to be key to ensure a better quality of life for young children on the autism spectrum. Among early support, different evidence-based approaches have combined the principles of developmental and behavioral science within a naturalistic and interactive frame and grouped under the umbrella of Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions (NDBI). In the context of NDBIs, the Early Start Denver Model is a manualized support that has reported evidence of efficacy for therapist-, group- and caregiver-implemented support, in multiple research as well as community based settings, different countries and languages (Rogers \& Dawson, 2010). Understanding the effects of support characteristics and intensity on individual learning has a major impact on the delivery systems organization and policies, sustainability in low resources community settings and to provide the necessary support to the family. However, a direct comparison among different types and intensity of early support in community setting and relatively low access to standardized and intensive programs, have not been adequately explored. For this reason, the aim of this study is to investigate, in a community setting in the Italian context, the impact of ESDM and support intensity on individual developmental trajectories.

Conditions

• Autism Spectrum Disorder

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Early Start Denver Model (ESDM)

The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) is an early naturalistic and behavioural intervention for children with initial signs of neurodivergence or on the autism spectrum between the ages of 12-48 months. This early intervention aims to increase the rates of development in several domains and to decrease the characteristics of autism conditions that hinder children's ability to learn from everyday experiences and interactions.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Istituto Superiore di Sanità

  collaborator OTHER

• Messina, Italy

  collaborator OTHER

• Società Cooperativa Sociale AUDACIA

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Associazione Ulisse

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• La Linea Curva

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Istituto per la Ricerca e l'Innovazione Biomedica

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Liliana Ruta · National Research Council of Italy, Institute for Biomedical Research and Innovation (CNR-IRIB)

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Months

Max Age

36 Months

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2021-11-01

Primary Completion

2024-09-30

Completion

2025-05-31

Countries

• Italy

Study Locations