Evidence-based knowledge is the result of research with strict guidelines and careful analysis. Research provides information about problems and solutions.
Evidence-based practice is considered therapeutic healthcare treatments and services that have been shown to be helpful through scientific research.
The following research reports are available free from PubMed.gov, a division of the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. There are numerous other articles available that may be beneficial to you. This is just an overview of some current results in Autism research.
Evidence-Based Knowledge
Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions: Empirically Validated Treatments for Autism Spectrum Disorder. Schreibman, L., Dawson, G., Stahmer, A. C., Landa, R., Rogers, S. J., McGee, G. G., … Halladay, A. (2015). Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 45(8), 2411–2428. http://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-015-2407-8http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4513196/
Therapies for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Behavioral Interventions Update . Editors: Weitlauf AS, McPheeters ML, Peters B, Sathe N, Travis R, Aiello R, Williamson E, Veenstra-VanderWeele J, Krishnaswami S, Jerome R, Warren Z.
Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2014 Aug. Report No.: 14-EHC036-EF. AHRQ Comparative Effectiveness Reviews. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25210724
Parent-mediated early intervention for young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Oono IP, Honey EJ, McConachie H. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013 Apr 30;4:CD009774. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD009774.pub2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23633377
Music therapy for people with autism spectrum disorder. Geretsegger M, Elefant C, Mössler KA, Gold C. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014 Jun 17;6:CD004381. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD004381.pub3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24936966
Cochrane review: social skills groups for people aged 6 to 21 with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Reichow B, Steiner AM, Volkmar F. Evidence Based Child Health. 2013 Mar 7;8(2):266-315. doi: 10.1002/ebch.1903 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23877884
A Randomized Clinical Trial Comparison Between Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) and Structured Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Intervention for Children with Autism, Fereshteh Mohammadzaheri, Lynn Kern Koegel, Mohammad Rezaee, and Seyed Majid Rafiee. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 2014 Nov; 44(11): 2769–2777.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4194254/
Improving question-asking initiations in young children with autism using pivotal response treatment. Koegel RL, Bradshaw JL, Ashbaugh K, Koegel LK.Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 2014 Apr;44(4):816-27. doi: 10.1007/s10803-013-1932-6.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24014174
New strategies and findings for behavioral interventions in autism spectrum disorders. Lord C, Jones RM. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 2013 Nov;1304:70-6. doi: 10.1111/nyas.12311. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24279894
Caregiver-mediated approaches to managing challenging behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder. Grofer Klinger, L., Ence, W., & Meyer, A. (2013). Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 15(2), 225–233. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3811093/
Communication, interventions, and scientific advances in autism: a commentary. Llaneza DC, DeLuke SV, Batista M, Crawley JN, Christodulu KV, Frye CA. Physiology and Behavior. 2010 Jun 1;100(3):268-76. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2010.01.003. Epub 2010 Jan 21. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20093134
National Standards Project
Families, educators, and service providers are constantly bombarded by a massive amount of confusing and often conflicting information about the myriad treatments available. The National Standards Project is helping to reduce the resulting turmoil and uncertainty by addressing the need for evidence-based practice standards and providing guidelines for how to make choices about interventions. http://www.nationalautismcenter.org/national-standards-project/
The Hawaii Autism Project: Evidence-Based Knowledge & Practice
The Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network (ADDM) is a department of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and functions as an active surveillance system that estimates the current and changing rates of autism, to determine if certain population groups have higher rates of autism, and to provide descriptive statistic of children with ASD. Current rates indicate one in 68 children have autism disorder. ASD continues to increase and affects children and communities in very different ways. Some of the children who are most severely affected by ASD are not getting help as early as possible, and most children with ASD are not being diagnosed as early as they could be. http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/addm.html
Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Health and Health Care among U.S. Adolescents. Lau, M., Lin, H., & Flores, G. (2012). This study comprehensively documents multiple disparities among racial/ethnic minority U.S. adolescents in three domains: medical and oral health status, access to care, and use of services. Health Services Research, 47(5), 2031–2059. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6773.2012.01394.x http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3513617/
Disparities in diagnoses received prior to a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. Mandell DS, Ittenbach RF, Levy SE, Pinto-Martin JA. (2007). This study estimated differences by ethnicity in the diagnoses assigned prior to the diagnosis of autism. Differences in diagnostic patterns by ethnicity suggest possible variations in parents' descriptions of symptoms, clinician interpretations, and expectations or symptom presentation. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders . 37(9):1795-802. Epub 2006 Dec 8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2861330/
Sex differences in structural organization of motor systems and their dissociable links with repetitive/restricted behaviors in children with autism. Supekar, K. & Menon, V. (2015). Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is diagnosed much less often in females than males. Emerging behavioral accounts suggest that the clinical presentation of autism is different in females and males. They found robust evidence for reduced levels of repetitive and restrictive behavior (RRB) in girls, compared to boys, with ASD, providing the strongest evidence to date for sex differences in a core phenotypic feature of childhood ASD. Sex differences in brain morphometry are prominent in the motor system and in areas that comprise the "social brain." Notably, RRB severity is associated with sex differences in GM morphometry in distinct motor regions. The findings provide novel insights into the neurobiology of sex differences in childhood autism. Molecular Autism. 4;6:50. doi: 10.1186/s13229-015-0042-z. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4559968/
Parenting-related stress and psychological distress in mothers of toddlers with autism spectrum disorders. Estes, A., Olson, E., Sullivan, K., Greenson, J., Winter, J., Dawson, G., & Munson, J. (2013). Parents of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are at risk for higher stress levels than parents of children with other developmental disabilities and typical development. The findings suggest that parent's abilities to manage and reduce behavior problems is a critical target for interventions for young children with ASD and developmental disability in order to improve child functioning and decrease parenting-related stress. Brain & Development, 35(2), 133–138. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.braindev.2012.10.004 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3552060/
Understanding autism and understanding my child with autism: an evaluation of a group parent education program in rural Australia. Farmer J, Reupert A. (2013). The program was designed to improve parent's knowledge and understanding of Autism, improve their confidence in managing their child and decrease parental anxiety. Parent feedback indicated that ongoing parent education sessions at regular intervals would enhance the impact of the program. Australian Journal of Rural Health. 21(1):20-7. doi: 10.1111/ajr.12004. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23384133
Evidenced-Based Practice