Sarah Peverill1, Isabel M Smith2, Eric Duku3, Peter Szatmari4, Pat Mirenda5, Tracy Vaillancourt6, Joanne Volden7, Lonnie Zwaigenbaum7, Teresa Bennett3, Mayada Elsabbagh8, Stelios Georgiades9, Wendy J Ungar10,11. 1. Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University. 2. Department of Pediatrics, Dalhousie University. 3. McMaster University, Offord Centre. 4. Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto. 5. Department of Educational & Counselling Psychology and Special Education, University of British Columbia. 6. Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa. 7. Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta. 8. Department of Psychiatry, McGill University. 9. Department of Psychiatry & Behavioural Sciences, McMaster University. 10. Child Evaluative Health Sciences, Hospital for Sick Children. 11. Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Although feeding problems are a common concern in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), few longitudinal studies have examined their persistence over time. The purpose of this study was to examine the developmental progression of feeding problems across four time points in preschoolers with ASD. METHODS: Group-based trajectory analyses revealed four distinct trajectories of feeding problems in our sample (N = 396). RESULTS: The majority of children showed levels of feeding problems that were low from the outset and stable (Group 1; 26.3%) or moderate and declining over time (Group 2; 38.9%). A third group (26.5%) showed high levels of feeding problems as preschoolers that declined to the average range by school age. Few participants (8.3%) showed evidence of severe chronic feeding problems. Feeding problems were more highly correlated with general behavior problems than with autism symptom severity. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, our findings demonstrated that in our sample of children with ASD, most feeding problems remitted over time, but a small subgroup showed chronic feeding problems into school age. It is important to consider and assess feeding problems in ASD against the backdrop of typical development, as many children with ASD may show improvement with age.
OBJECTIVE: Although feeding problems are a common concern in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), few longitudinal studies have examined their persistence over time. The purpose of this study was to examine the developmental progression of feeding problems across four time points in preschoolers with ASD. METHODS: Group-based trajectory analyses revealed four distinct trajectories of feeding problems in our sample (N = 396). RESULTS: The majority of children showed levels of feeding problems that were low from the outset and stable (Group 1; 26.3%) or moderate and declining over time (Group 2; 38.9%). A third group (26.5%) showed high levels of feeding problems as preschoolers that declined to the average range by school age. Few participants (8.3%) showed evidence of severe chronic feeding problems. Feeding problems were more highly correlated with general behavior problems than with autism symptom severity. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, our findings demonstrated that in our sample of children with ASD, most feeding problems remitted over time, but a small subgroup showed chronic feeding problems into school age. It is important to consider and assess feeding problems in ASD against the backdrop of typical development, as many children with ASD may show improvement with age.
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