With increased interest in the early diagnosis and treatment of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), more attention has been called to the motor skills of very young children with ASD. This study describes the gross and fine motor skills of a cross-sectional group of 162 children with ASD between the ages of 12 and 36 months, as well as a subset of 58 children followed longitudinally. Gross motor and fine motor age equivalent scores were obtained for all children. A ‘motor difference’ variable was calculated for each child’s gross and fine motor skills by taking the absolute difference of the children’s age equivalent motor score and their respective chronological age. In Study 1 (the cross-sectional analysis), ANCOVA (co-varied for nonverbal problem solving) revealed significant group differences in the gross motor and fine motor age difference variables. Post-hoc analysis revealed that gross motor and fine motor differences became significantly greater with each 6-month period of chronological age. In Study 2, 58 children were measured twice, an average of 12 months apart. Results indicate that the gross motor and fine motor difference scores significantly increased between the first and second measurements. The importance of addressing motor development in early intervention treatments is discussed.

BackgroundAlthough motor deficits are gaining attention in autism research much less attention has been paid to the physical activity patterns in this group of children. The participants in this study were a group of children with autism spectrum disorder (N = 72) between the ages of 9-18 years. This cross-sectional study explored the physical activity patterns of seventy-two children with autism spectrum disorder as they aged.FindingsResults indicated significant differences between the mean time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity and the mean time spent in sedentary activity. Older children with autism spectrum disorder are significantly more physically inactive, compared to younger children.ConclusionsPhysical activity programs and interventions need to address this deficit, in physical activity. Children with autism have a similar trend in physical activity patterns compared to their peers without autism; associated benefits and future research will be discussed.

Motor skill deficits are present and persist in school-aged children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; Staples & Reid, 2010). Yet the focus of intervention is on core impairments, which are part of the diagnostic criteria for ASD, deficits in social communication skills. The purpose of this study is to determine whether the functional motor skills, of 6- to 15-year-old children with high-functioning ASD, predict success in standardized social communicative skills. It is hypothesized that children with better motor skills will have better social communicative skills. A total of 35 children with ASD between the ages of 6–15 years participated in this study. The univariate GLM (general linear model) tested the relationship of motor skills on social communicative skills holding constant age, IQ, ethnicity, gender, and clinical ASD diagnosis. Object-control motor skills significantly predicted calibrated ASD severity (p < .05). Children with weaker motor skills have greater social communicative skill deficits. How this relationship exists behaviorally, needs to be explored further.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by impairments in social communication deficits and the presence of restricted and repetitive behaviors, interests, or activities. Literature comparing the physical activity and fitness of children with ASD to typically developing peers is in need of attention. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the physical activity and fitness of school-aged children with ASD (N = 17) in comparison to typically developing peers (N = 12). Participants with ASD completed diagnostic and developmental assessments and a series of physical fitness assessments: 20-meter multistage shuttle, sit-and-reach test, handgrip strength, and body mass index. Physical activity was measured using accelerometry and preestablished cut-points of physical activity (Freedson et al., 2005). MANCOVA revealed significant between-group effects in strength (P = .03), while ANCOVA revealed significant between-group effects in sedentary (P = .00), light (P = .00), moderate (P = .00), and total moderate-to-vigorous (P = .01) physical activity. Children with ASD are less physically active and fit than typically developing peers. Adapted physical activity programs are one avenue with intervention potential to combat these lower levels of physical activity and fitness found in children with ASD.

The purpose of this study was to examine the physical activity patterns of children with Down syndrome. A cross-sectional approach and accelerometry were used to measure the time children with Down syndrome (N = 104) spent in sedentary, light, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Results indicated that adolescents from ages 14 to 15 years were the most sedentary and spent the least amount of time in light and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. A general trend of decreasing physical activity as children increase in age was found. This trend is similar to that found among typically developing youth. Participants in this study were found to spend a majority of their day engaged in sedentary activities. Results indicate that most participants were not accumulating the recommended 60 minutes of moderate or vigorous physical activity.

In addition to the core characteristics of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), motor skill deficits are present, persistent, and pervasive across age. Although motor skill deficits have been indicated in young children with autism, they have not been included in the primary discussion of early intervention content. One hundred fifty-nine young children with a confirmed diagnosis of ASD (n = 110), PDD-NOS (n = 26), and non-ASD (n = 23) between the ages of 14-33 months participated in this study.1 The univariate general linear model tested the relationship of fine and gross motor skills and social communicative skills (using calibrated autism severity scores). Fine motor and gross motor skills significantly predicted calibrated autism severity (p < .05). Children with weaker motor skills have greater social communicative skill deficits. Future directions and the role of motor skills in early intervention are discussed.

Silicone wristbands can be used as passive sampling tools for measuring personal environmental exposure to organic compounds. Due to the lightweight and simple design, the wristband may be a useful technique for measuring children’s exposure. In this study, we tested the stability of flame retardant compounds in silicone wristbands and developed an analytical approach for measuring 41 flame retardants in the silicone wristband in order to evaluate exposure to these compounds in preschool-aged children. To evaluate the robustness of using wristbands to measure flame retardants, we evaluated the stability of 3 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (BDEs), and 2 organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) in wristbands over 84 days and did not find any evidence of significant loss over time at either 4 or −20°C (p > 0.16). We recruited a cohort of 92 preschool aged children in Oregon to wear the wristband for 7 days in order to characterize children’s acceptance of the technology, and to characterize their exposure to flame retardants. Seventy-seven parents returned the wristbands for analysis of 35 BDEs, 4 OPFRs, and 2 other brominated flame retardants although 5 were excluded from the exposure assessment due to protocol deviations (n=72). A total of 20 compounds were detected above the limit of quantitation, and 11 compounds including 4 OPFRs and 7 BDEs were detected in over 60% of the samples. Children’s gender, age, race, recruitment site, and family context were not significantly associated with returning wristbands or compliance with protocols. Comparisons between flame retardant data and socio-demographic information revealed significant differences in total exposures to both ΣBDEs and ΣOPFRs based on age of house, vacuuming frequency, and family context. These results demonstrate that preschool children in Oregon are exposed to BDEs that are no longer being produced in the United States and to OPFRs that have been used as an alternative to polybrominated compounds. Silicone wristbands were well tolerated by young children and were useful for characterizing personal exposure to flame retardants that were not bound to particulate matter.

Objective To determine the relationship of motor skills and the core behaviors of young children with autism, social affective skills and repetitive behaviors, as indicated through the calibrated autism severity scores. Design The univariate GLM tested the relationship of gross and fine motor skills measured by the gross motor scale and the fine motor scale of the MSEL with autism symptomology as measured by calibrated autism severity scores. Setting Majority of the data collected took place in an autism clinic. Participants A cohort of 159 young children with ASD (n=110), PDD-NOS (n=26) and non-ASD (developmental delay, n=23) between the ages of 12–33 months were recruited from early intervention studies and clinical referrals. Children with non-ASD (developmental delay) were included in this study to provide a range of scores indicted through calibrated autism severity. Interventions Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures The primary outcome measures in this study were calibrated autism severity scores. Results Fine motor skills and gross motor skills significantly predicted calibrated autism severity (p < 0.01). Children with weaker motor skills displayed higher levels of calibrated autism severity. Conclusions The fine and gross motor skills are significantly related to autism symptomology. There is more to focus on and new avenues to explore in the realm of discovering how to implement early intervention and rehabilitation for young children with autism and motor skills need to be a part of the discussion.