Dados do Trabalho

Título

EFFECTS OF TRANSCRANIAL DIRECT CURRENT STIMULATION ON LANGUAGE REHABILITATION IN AN AUTISTIC CHILD

Apresentação dos casos

Autism spectrum disorder often presents impairments in the three modalities of language (reception, expression, and use) (Mody & Belliveau, 2012) and may result in stagnation in the developmental process even after conventional interventions (Brignell et al., 2018). In recent years, neuroscience research has employed transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as a promising tool in the treatment and rehabilitation of various neurological and psychiatric conditions (Fregni et al., 2021).

Discussão

This case study involves a 4-year-old male child diagnosed with autism associated with language disorder. The child underwent a protocol of 30 tDCS sessions, 20 minutes each, at 1mA, applied three times a week for 10 weeks, combined with speech therapy sessions. The anode was positioned over Broca’s area, and the cathode over Fp2. The Social Responsiveness Scale – SRS2 was administered before starting the protocol and after its completion with the parents. Quantitative results demonstrated a decrease in autistic symptoms that impair communication and social cognition, as well as in restrictive and repetitive patterns. Qualitative results showed improvement in verbal communicative intent, vocabulary use, sentence construction (including extended sentences), response speed to verbal stimuli, and clarity in expressing thoughts and feelings.

Comentários finais

These findings suggest that the use of tDCS as an adjunct to speech therapy may be an effective strategy for treating children with autism spectrum disorder who have language difficulties.

Referências

Brignell, A., Morgan, A. T., Woolfenden, S., Klopper, F., May, T., Sarkozy, V., & Williams, K. (2018). A systematic review and meta-analysis of the prognosis of language outcomes for individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Autism & Developmental Language Impairments, 3, 239694151876761. https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941518767610

Fregni, F., El-Hagrassy, M. M., Pacheco-Barrios, K., Carvalho, S., Leite, J., Simis, M., Brunelin, J., Nakamura-Palacios, E. M., Marangolo, P., Venkatasubramanian, G., San-Juan, D., Caumo, W., Bikson, M., & Brunoni, A. R. (2021). Evidence-Based Guidelines and Secondary Meta-Analysis for the Use of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders. In International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology (Vol. 24, Issue 4, pp. 256–313). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijnp/pyaa051

Mody, M., & Belliveau, J. W. (2012). Speech and Language Impairments in Autism: Insights from Behavior and Neuroimaging. American Chinese Journal of Medicine and Science, 5(3), 157. https://doi.org/10.7156/v5i3p157

Palavras Chave

AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER; Language Disorder; Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation