, MSOT, were students in entry-level master' s studies in the occupational therapy program at the University of New England at the time of this study.OBJECTIVE. This study investigated changes in salivary cortisol, the stress hormone, after administration of a procedure based on the Wilbarger protocol to children diagnosed with sensory defensiveness (SD), a type of sensory modulation dysfunction.METHOD. Using a single-subject design across participants, we studied 4 boys with SD ages 3 to 5 years.Each participant completed four sessions consisting of the collection of a saliva sample, administration of a procedure based on the Wilbarger protocol, 15 min of quiet neutral activities to allow time for any changes in cortisol level to manifest in the saliva, and the second collection of saliva. Saliva samples were analyzed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).RESULTS. Salivary cortisol levels in all participants changed after each of four applications of a procedure based on the Wilbarger protocol. The cortisol levels of 2 children whose levels were relatively higher on pretest decreased at each posttest. The levels of 1 child whose cortisol was higher on pretest three times decreased those three times and increased the one time the pretest cortisol was lower. The levels of 1 child who had the lowest cortisol levels of any of the children increased each time. Therefore, in all participants, cortisol moved in the direction of modulation.CONCLUSION. In these 4 boys, a procedure based on the Wilbarger protocol modulated cortisol levels toward a middle range. This pilot study indicates that there is an association between sympathetic nervous system response and the Wilbarger protocol-based procedure, as indicated by salivary cortisol levels.
A normative comparison was carried out on the Southern California Postrotary Nystagmus Test. Two hundred and twenty two (222) children, ages five to nine, from Syracuse, New York, were compared with the original Los Angeles sample of 226. In analyzing the Syracuse data, no significant differences were found in duration of postrotary nystagmus by age, sex, or age/sex interaction. Comparison of the Syracuse with the Los Angeles data revealed significantly different means and standard deviations, with the effect that the cut-off point for diagnosing prolonged nystagmus shifted upward. It was concluded that postrotary nystagmus is a consistent measure unaffected by age or six in normal five- to nine-year-olds, but that in view of the differences between the Syracuse and Los Angeles data, care should be taken in diagnosing prolonged postrotary nystagmus.
Nineteen boys aged 6 through 8 years were pretested with the preliminary edition of the Sensory Integration and Praxis Tests (SIPT) (Ayres, 1984). They subsequently received 6 months of twice weekly occupational therapy with sensory integration intervention in a school setting and were then posttested with the preliminary edition of the SIPT. Significant improvement was seen in scores of grouped data on tests of praxis, somatovestibular functioning, and bilateral integration and sequencing. Individual improvement was visible in the Western Psychological Services ChromaGraphs of 17 of the 19 boys. Although preliminary, these findings suggest that the SIPT, unlike the Southern California Sensory Integration Tests (Ayres, 1972a), may be used to document improvement in children who have received occupational therapy with sensory integrative techniques.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.