Child and Adult Autism Spectrum Disorder in COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The worldwide population prevalence of autism is about 1%. The current panorama that we are experiencing with the COVID-19 pandemic, makes it difficult for many people to understand and assimilate everything what is happening. In persons with autism, this difficulty can become extreme, both in children and adults. However, there are some recommendations to help process and assimilate this situation and like this avoid or reduce complications in this population. This recommendations are simple, but they are difficult to perform. However, they can help keep the loved ones and their family members more bearable. Only by knowing its characteristics and applying a few recommendations or guidelines, caregivers and the affected persons will be able to lead a more enjoyable life.

Experience of Autistic Children and Their Families During the Pandemic: From Distress to Coping Strategies

“…These studies have largely documented the issue of autistic children's de cits in social interactions, but do not provide information on their need for social interaction. Like in Altable (23) and Pellicano,Brett (8), our study shows that social interactions are indeed important for autistic children and could offer a new way to approach this issue, beyond the de cits. It would be relevant to consider, maintain and foster social interactions in autistic children's lives, because they seem to play a major role in these children's well-being and quality of life.…”

“…Regardless of the parent pro le (half of the sample of parents considered this period particularly di cult), a general consensus emerged among the parents on the importance of having access to information to understand their autistic child's characteristics and to put in place measures suited to these characteristics. The pandemic has shown that interventions for autistic children must not only target the children directly, but also provide parents with tools to better understand and support their child in the form of parent-mediated intervention (9,23,24). In our study, setting up a routine was a main facilitating factor identi ed by the parents and a helping factor reported by the children.…”

Reflections of COVID-19 Pandemic on Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Descriptive Case Study

“…Since early childhood interventions not only support the personal development of children but also include a process where several support services are provided to improve parental skills and promote the social participation of both parents and children, delaying the evaluation would not only postpone the initiation of the education, but also the therapy, health, social work, counseling services, etc. (Bakkaloğlu, 2020; WHO & UNICEF, 2012) Thus, children with ASD and their parents who cannot receive institutional intervention under the current conditions are expected to experience higher levels of stress (Altable et al, 2020). Therefore, providing information remotely to the parents is extremely important.…”

“…Routines that help us organize our domestic, educational, and professional life are very important to feel the confidence that is derived from regular, predetermined, and stable activities (Bozkuş-Genç, 2019). The unexpected changes in these routines and rules, which are important for individuals to feel comfortable and safe, lead to various psychological and physical problems such as trauma, depression, and psychological pressures even in children with typical development (Cao et al, 2020) and become difficult to understand and manage for children with ASD and their parents who are strictly bound by routines (Altable et al, 2020;Narzisi, 2020). The limitations encountered by children with ASD and the deterioration of their routines are considered difficult to manage (e.g., fear from the virus, disappointment, deprivation, finding it boring to conduct homeschooling, and feelings of anger, etc.)…”

“…social-communication, self-care, vocational, psychological, etc.) is expected to decrease and these groups are expected to exhibit higher levels of stress (Altable et al, 2020;Bakér-Ericzen et al, 2005;Stankovic et al, 2020). Considering that individuals with ASD are more likely to develop anxiety, distress, and depression in the face of uncertainties (Mazefsky et al, 2008;Yirmiya & Shaked, 2005), it is likely that limitations in daily life would disrupt the daily routine and would affect the psychological health of several individuals with ASD (Wright et al, 2020).…”