Complementary and Alternative Medicine Treatments for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Regardless of their limited evidence and potential adverse effects, use of complementary and alternative medicine is common in children with autism spectrum disorder. Nevertheless, data on complementary and alternative medicine use in children with autism spectrum disorder in Germany are lacking. Therefore, a questionnaire survey on the use of complementary and alternative medicine was distributed to parents of children with autism spectrum disorder from three academic autism spectrum disorder outpatient clinics in Germany. Of 211 respondents, 46% stated that their child currently used or had ever used some form of complementary and alternative medicine in their life. The complementary and alternative medicine modalities most frequently used were manipulative and body-based methods (e.g. craniosacral therapy). And 18% of caregivers expressed willingness to try complementary and alternative medicine treatments for their child with autism spectrum disorder in the future, with mind–body interventions predominating. Health professionals should be aware of the considerable complementary and alternative medicine use prevalence among children with autism spectrum disorder and offer parents information about its effectiveness and potential side effects.

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Prevalence and correlates of use of complementary and alternative medicine in children with autism spectrum disorder in Europe

European Journal of Pediatrics ◽

10.1007/s00431-015-2531-7 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 174 (10) ◽

pp. 1277-1285 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Erica Salomone ◽

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Tony Charman ◽

Helen McConachie ◽

Petra Warreyn

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Alternative Medicine ◽

Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Complementary And Alternative

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“Chasing hope”: Parents’ perspectives on complementary and alternative interventions for children with autism in Kazakhstan

Autism ◽

10.1177/1362361320923494 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 24 (7) ◽

pp. 1817-1828

Author(s):

Sofiya An ◽

Akbota Kanderzhanova ◽

Assel Akhmetova ◽

Faye Foster ◽

Chee Kai Chan

Keyword(s):

Alternative Medicine ◽

Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Autistic Children ◽

Framework Analysis ◽

Enabling Factors ◽

Complementary And Alternative Medicines ◽

Alternative Medicines ◽

Complementary And Alternative

In post-Soviet Kazakhstan, the system of care for children with autism has been transforming over the past three decades. There is little known about the use of complementary and alternative medicine by families raising autistic children in the post-Soviet region. An exploratory qualitative focus group design was employed to study parents’ experiences of using complementary and alternative medicine focusing on the perceived factors driving the utilization of complementary and alternative medicine by families of autistic children and the availability of complementary and alternative medicine. Six focus groups were conducted in five cities of diverse geographical locations in Kazakhstan. Data were analyzed using a framework analysis. Two overarching themes and subthemes are developed. The first “unmet needs” relates to predisposing factors that motivate parents to complementary and alternative medicine uptake and the second “chasing hope” relates to enabling factors that facilitate parents’ uptake of complementary and alternative medicines. In summary, parents of autism spectrum disorder children in Kazakhstan face multiple challenges when seeking treatment for their children’s condition and implement whatever complementary and alternative medicine interventions available. A decision to use, and the choice of intervention, mainly comes from perceptions of having no other choice rather than from rational decisions based on efficacy of complementary and alternative medicines. This study provides the first empirical conceptualization of parents’ motives for choosing complementary and alternative medicine in Kazakhstan. Lay abstract The article reports the findings of a qualitative research study on how and why parents of autistic children in Kazakhstan utilize complementary and alternative medicine. We found that parents turn to complementary and alternative medicine because of the lack of professional care options available to them and in pursuit for hope and opportunities for their children with ASD.

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