Research progress in preemptive screening and intervention for autism spectrum disorder in infancy

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1674-8115.2025.02.011

Abstract

Abstract:

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder starting from early childhood. At present, the age of diagnosis for ASD in children is significantly delayed, typically occurring after two years of age, although behavioral signs or prodromal symptoms can emerge before the age of 12 months. These early indicators gradually evolve into the core symptoms of ASD. It has been well recognized that early screening and intervention can maximally improve its prognosis and promote optimal development of the affected children. Therefore, there has been increasing emphasis on preemptive screening and intervention for prodromal symptoms of ASD before the age of 12 months in clinical practice and research, so as to reduce the symptoms to a normal state to some extent. However, during the prodromal period of ASD, especially before the age of one, preemptive screening and intervention present many challenges. Preemptive screening faces obstacles such as significant individual differences in infant growth and development, incomplete presentation of ASD symptoms, and differing assessment content and criteria; preemptive intervention must overcome challenges like the diversity of screening tools and varying factors of parents. As a result, few research has been conducted in this field. This review mainly introduces preemptive screening tools and intervention techniques for children with ASD in the first year of life, including the intervention used in the British Autism Study of Infant Siblings-video interaction for promoting positive parenting (iBASIS-VIPP), the promoting first relationships, the environmental enrichment for infants, parenting with acceptance and commitment therapy (ENACT), and the adapted response teaching. The application of neuroimaging technology and artificial intelligence technology is also explained to provide reference for relevant research and clinical practice.

Key words: autism spectrum disorder (ASD), preemptive screening, preemptive intervention, infant

CLC Number:

R749

CAO Siyao, LIU Jieqiong, WANG Guangshuai, WANG Guanghai. Research progress in preemptive screening and intervention for autism spectrum disorder in infancy[J]. Journal of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (Medical Science), 2025, 45(2): 222-227.

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