Copy of `Research Autism - Glossary of autism spectrum`

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Research Autism - Glossary of autism spectrum Category: Health and Medicine > Autism Date & country: 16/12/2007, UK Words: 577

Sensory Profile
125-item questionnaire that describes responses to sensory events in daily life.

Sensory Learning Program
Type of Sensory Integration Treatment

Sensory Processing Disorder
Disorder of the brain which makes people misinterpret everyday sensory information, such as touch, sound, and movement. This can lead to behavioural problems, difficulties with coordination, and many other issues.

Sensory Integrative Dysfunction
Condition characterised by unusual reactions or sensitivity to sensations such as sound, light or touch.

Sensory Integration Therapy
Aims to mitigate abnormal behaviours caused by sensory sensitivity by teaching an individual how to incorporate information gathered through the senses: smell, taste, touch, hearing, and vision.

Sensory integration
The capacity of an individual to receive and process information provided by the senses. Many people with autism have poor sensory integration, which leads to problem behaviours.

Seizure
Sudden change in behavior due to an excessive electrical activity in the brain.

Semantic-Pragmatic Disorder
Condition characterized by good grammatical language but lack of ability to use language in a socially appropriate manner.

Sedatives
Class of drugs used to treat a range of problems including insomnia and anxiety

Secretin
Secretin is a gastrointestinal hormone that helps promote digestion of food. Some people believe it is a useful treatment for autism. However there is strong evidence to show that it is ineffective.

Scotopic Lenses
Type of Coloured Filter

Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome
Condition in which individuals are especially sensitive to lights, glare, patterns, colours, and contrast.

Scientific Method
Body of techniques for investigating phenomena and acquiring new knowledge, as well as for correcting and integrating previous knowledge. It is based on observable, empirical, measurable evidence, and subject to laws of reasoning. All such evidence is collectively called scientific evidence.

Schizophrenia
Mental health problem characterised by intermittent psychosis. Autism was initially thought to be a childhood version of schizophernia, which is why it is sometimes called 'Infantile Psychosis'.

SALT or SLT
Acronym for Speech and Language Therapy

SCERTS model
Intervention which focuses on Social-Communication, Emotional Regulation, and Transactional Support as the principal dimensions for intervention planning

Salicylate
Plant hormone found in leafy vegetables and fruit . Some people advocate a low saliylate diet.

Rutger's autism programme
Similar to Lovaas method of ABA in many ways. However families and schools provide therapy as advised and trained by programme staff rather than the staff carrying out treatment.

RPM
Acronym for Rapid Prompting Method

Rubella
Maternal rubella infection in the first eight to ten weeks of pregnancy results in foetal damage in up to 90% of infants. Multiple defects, which may include autistic traits, are common and are collectively known as Congenital Rubella Syndrome.

Rotation Diet
Diet which involves eating different things at different times

Robotics
Use of specialy designed robots to help individuals

Rolfing
Type of massage which aims to align the human body in the gravitational field

Ritalin
Type of Stimulant

Right Hemisphere Learning Disorder
Another term for Non-Verbal Learning Disorder.

Risperidone
Antipsychotic medication. It is most often used to treat delusional psychosis (including schizophrenia), but can also be used to treat bipolar disorder, psychotic depression and Tourette syndrome. It is sometimes used, in low doses, to treat the symptoms of autistic spectrum disorders.

Riding Therapy
Type of Animal therapy or Physical Therapy

Rhythmic Entrainment Intervention
MusicMedicine therapy which uses recorded hand drumming rhythms to stimulate the central nervous system and improve brain function

Responsive Teaching
Parent-mediated programme which focuses on helping parents to interact more responsively to their children

Rett Disorder
A rare form of ASD in which a child appears to develolp normally until the age of two and then regresses. Usually only found in females.

Respite Care
Short term care that helps a family take a break from the daily routine and stress

Residential care
Staying at a residential home which provides care and support 24 hours per day, offering a level of support that is not usually available to people living in their own homes

Relationship-Based Interventions
Range of interventions which focus on the child's ability to form positive, meaningful relationships with other people

Reliability
The degree to which results obtained by a measurement procedure can be replicated. Lack of reliability can arise from divergences between observers or measurement instruments, measurement error, or instability in the attribute being measured.

Reiki
Type of Touch Therapy and a form of Faith Healing, in which the practitioner places their hands in a sequence of positions which cover the whole body

REI
Acronym for Rhythmic Entrainment Intervention

Recreation Therapy
Type of Play Therapy

Reflexology
Practice of stimulating points on the feet, hands and ears

Regressive Autism
Form of autism in which children appear to develop normal language and social skills but then lose these with the onset of autism before age 3.

Rebound Therapy
Use of trampolines to provide therapeutic exercise and recreation

RDI
Acronym for Relationship Development Intervention

Rapid Prompting Method
Technique designed to develop academic and communication skills by eliciting responses through intensive verbal, auditory, visual and/or tactile prompts

RCT
Acronym for Randomised Control Trial.

Randomised Control Trial
An experiment in which two or more interventions, possibly including a control intervention or no intervention, are compared by being randomly allocated to participants.

Random Allocation
A method that uses the play of chance to assign participants to comparison groups in a trial, e.g. by using a random numbers table or a computer-generated random sequence.

Quality Score
A value assigned to represent the validity of a study either for a specific criterion, such as concealment of allocation, or overall.

Quetiapine
Type of Atypical Anti-psychotic

Pyridoxine
Type of Vitamin B6

Pygmalion Effect
Situations in which participants in a study perform better than other participants simply because they are expected to do so.

Psychotropic
Any substance, usually a drug, which affects the brain and influences behaviour.

Psychosis
Condition in which a person's perception of reality becomes distorted, often accompanied by delusions and/or hallucinations.

Psychodynamic Therapy
Therapy which tries to get the patient to bring to the surface their true feelings, so that they can experience them and understand them. Autism was once considered to be caused by the mother's emotional coldness to her autistic child, although this theory is now largely discredited.

Psycho-pharmacological
Interventions which use chemical compounds, including medications, to affect the mind.

Psycho-educational
Interventions which use behavioural and other teaching techniques, to change behaviours.

Prozac
Type of Anti-depresssant

Prompting Devices
Devices which use a signal to prompt an individual to do something. The signal may be visual, auditory or tactile

Proband
Term used to denote a particular subject (person or animal) being studied or reported on.

Probiotic Diets
Diets which use supplements containing potentially beneficial bacteria or yeast

Prevalence
Measure of how commonly a disease or disorder occurs in a population.

Prism lenses
Lenses which refract light, breaking it up into different colours or polarizations

Portage
Home-visiting educational service

Power card
Card which an individual carries to remind him or her how to deal with a difficult situation

Placebo Effect
Psychological benefit to the participant through a belief that s/he is receiving treatment.

Play Therapy
Therapy in which play is used to help individuals to address and resolve their own problems

PKU
Acronym for Phenylketonuria

Placebo
An inactive substance or procedure administered to a participant, usually to compare its effects with those of a real drug or other intervention.

Pivotal Response Training
Technique used in interventions such as Applied Behavioural Analysis

Pioglitazone
Medication which modulates insulin sensitivity and exerts anti-inflammatory effects

Picture symbols
Line drawings, which are usually accompanied by the written word, used to enhance the spoken word. For example, a parent may put a picture of a toilet, with the word 'toilet' written underneath, on the toilet door.

Picture Rehearsal
Instructional strategy that uses repeated practice of a sequence of behaviors by presenting the sequence to the individual in the form of pictures and accompanying script

Phytopharmaceuticals
Another name for herbs

Physiotherapy
Intervention which involves a range of treatments, including manipulation, massage, exercise, electrotherapy and hydrotherapy

Physical therapies
Wide range of interventions involving the body, including physiotherapy, exercise and sports

Phototherapy
Another name for Light Therapy

Photron Therapy
A form of lightwave stimulation in which an individual looks at coloured light produced by a special machine called a Lumatron or a Photron Light Stimulator.

Photocurrent Deficit
Deficit of the nerve currents which help regulate vision and the cerebral cortex, the limbic system and the brain stem.

Photo Stimulation Therapy
Type of lightwave stimulation in which an individual looks at coloured light produced by a special machine called a Lumatron or a Photron Light Stimulator.

Pheraplay
Type of Play Therapy

Phenylketonuria
Rare hereditary condition in which the amino acid phenylalanine is not properly metabolized. PKU can cause severe learning disabilities, and autistic symptoms, if not treated.

Phenotype
Observable characteristics of an organism, determined by the interaction between its genotype and environmental factors.

Pet therapy
Therapy that involves a person with autism having a pet animal, such as a dog or horse.

Pharmacology
That part of medical science dealing with knowledge of the action of drugs.

Pervasive Developmental Disorders
Another term for Autistic Specturm Disorders

Peptide
Proteins created by the incomplete breakdown of gluten and/or casein in the digestive system.

PECS
Acronym for Picture Exchange Communication System

Peer Review
A refereeing process for checking the quality and importance of reports of research. An article submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal is reviewed by other experts in the area.

PDD
Acronym for Pervasive Developmental Disorder/s

Patterning Therapy
Range of therapies which use a series of bodily exercises, and other activities which are intended to 'rewire' the brain

Pathological Demand Avoidance
Condition in which individuals resist and avoid the ordinary demands of life, using skilful strategies which are socially manipulative (distracting adults, using excuses, appearing to become physically incapacitated).

PANDAS
Acronym for Paediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcus.

Paroxetine
Type of SSRI Anti-depresssant

Paired Associative Learning
Teaching method which involves the learner experiencing two stimuli at once or in close proximity and beginning to associate them.

Packing
Therapy which involves wrapping the individual in towels previously wet in cold water. The individual is then wrapped with blankets to help the body warm up

Overlay
Piece of coloured, transparent plastic. Believed by some people to help people with Irlen Syndrome.

Oxytocin
Hormone involved in social recognition and bonding

Outcome
The effect or impact of an intervention on the participants

OT
Acronym for Occupational Therapy

Orodispersible
Tablets which disolve in the mouth and therefore easy to swallow

Orthomolecular therapy
Another term for Vitamin Supplements

Opioid antagonists
Morphine-like substances, such as naltrexone, which can be used to block the effect of endorphins in our central nervous system. Some people believe they can be used to treat autism.