Auditory abnormalities in children with autism
Ying-Hua Tan, Chun-Yan Xi, Shu-Ping Jiang, Bing-Xin Shi, Li-Bo Wang, Lin Wang
.
DOI: 10.4236/ojpsych.2012.21005   PDF    HTML     8,469 Downloads   15,177 Views   Citations

Abstract

The present study aimed to describe the characteristics of auditory abnormalities present in cases of autism. One hundred and fifty six children with autism and 141matched controls with language delay were investigated via direct observations combined with parent/caregiver reports. All of the autistic individuals demonstrated auditory abnormalities especially in the domain of hyposensitivity, compared with 33.3% of children with language delay. The auditory abnormalities in autism primarily comprised of auditory hyposensitivity, auditory hypersensitivity, phonophobia, and peculiar interests in certain sounds. Participants with autism were rated as having more problems than the language-delayed children in all the items of each domain. No significant difference in the range of auditory abnormalities were observed between mild and severe autistic children except for the presence of phonophobia. Children with autism presented with diverse auditory abnormalities which may be specific features in autism and may play an important role in the early identification of autism.

Share and Cite:

Tan, Y. , Xi, C. , Jiang, S. , Shi, B. , Wang, L. and Wang, L. (2012) Auditory abnormalities in children with autism. Open Journal of Psychiatry, 2, 33-37. doi: 10.4236/ojpsych.2012.21005.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1] American Psychiatric Association. (2000) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), Washington DC.
[2] World Health Organization. (1993) Mental disorders: A glossary and guide to their classification in accordance with the 10th revision of the international classification of diseases-research diagnostic criteria (ICD-10), Geneva, WHO.
[3] Fombonne, E. (2003) Epidemiological surveys of autism and other pervasive developmental disorders: An update. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33, 365-382. doi:10.1023/A:1024419831376
[4] Kellerman, G.R., Fan, J. and Gorman, J.M. (2005) Auditory abnormalities in autism: Toward functional distinctions among findings. CNS Spectrums, 10, 748-756.
[5] Rogers S.J., Hepburn, S. and Wehner, E. (2003) Parent reports of sensory symptoms in toddlers with autism and those with other developmental disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33, 631-642. doi:10.1023/B:JADD.0000006000.38991.a7
[6] Wiggins, L.D., Robins, D.L., Bakeman, R. and Adamson, L.B. (2009) Brief report: Sensory abnormalities as distinguishing symptoms of autism spectrum disorders in young children. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 39, 1087-1091. doi:10.1007/s10803-009-0711-x
[7] Ben-Sasson, A., Hen, L., Fluss, R., Cermak, S.A., Engel-Yeger, B. and Gal, E. (2009) A meta-analysis of sensory modulation symptoms in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 39, 1-11. doi:10.1007/s10803-008-0593-3
[8] Hitoglou, M., Ververi, A., Antoniadis, A. and Zafeiriou, D.I. (2010) Childhood autism and auditory system abnormalities. Pediatric Neurology, 42, 309-314. doi:10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2009.10.009
[9] Dunn, W. (1999) The short sensory profile. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio, TX.
[10] Gravel, J.S., Dunn, M., Lee, W.W. and Ellis, M.A. (2006) Peripheral audition of children on the autistic spectrum. Ear and Hearing, 27, 299-312. doi:10.1097/01.aud.0000215979.65645.22
[11] Harrison, J. and Hare, D.J. (2004) Brief report: Assessment of sensory abnormalities in people with autistic spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34, 727-730. doi:10.1007/s10803-004-5293-z
[12] Klintwall, L., Holm, A., Eriksson, M., Carlsson, L.H., Olsson, M.B., Hedvall, A., Gillberg, C. and Fernell, E. (2011) Sensory abnormalities in autism. A brief report. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 32, 795-800. doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2010.10.021
[13] Kwakye, L.D., Foss-Feig, J.H., Cascio, C.J., Stone, W.L. and Wallace, M.T. (2011) Altered auditory and multisensory temporal processing in autism spectrum disorders. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience, 4, 129. doi:10.3389/fnint.2010.00129
[14] Rosenhall, U., Nordin, V., Sandstrom, M., Ahlsén, G. and Gillberg, C. (1999) Autism and hearing loss. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 29, 349-357. doi:10.1023/A:1023022709710
[15] Seri, S., Pisani, F., Thai, J.N. and Cerquiglini, A. (2007) Pre-attentive auditory sensory processing in autistic spectrum disorder. Are electromagnetic measurements telling us a coherent story? International Journal of Psychophysiology, 63, 159-163. doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2006.03.013
[16] Rosenhall, U., Nordin, V., Brantberg, K. and Gillberg, C. (2003) Autism and auditory brain stem responses. Ear and Hearing, 24, 206-214. doi:10.1097/01.AUD.0000069326.11466.7E
[17] Kwon, S., Kim, J., Choe, B.H., Ko, C. and Park, S. (2007) Electrophysiologic assessment of central auditory processing by auditory brainstem responses in children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Korean Medical Science, 22, 656-659. doi:10.3346/jkms.2007.22.4.656
[18] Tharpe, A.M., Bess, F.H., Sladen, D.P., Schissel, H., Couch, S. and Schery. T. (2006) Auditory characteristics of children with autism. Ear and Hearing, 27, 430-441. doi:10.1097/01.aud.0000224981.60575.d8
[19] Tecchio, F., Benassi, F., Zappasodi, F., Gialloreti, L.E., Palermo, M., Seri, S. and Rossini, P.M. (2003) Auditory sensory processing in autism: A magnetoencephalographic study. Biological Psychiatry, 54, 647-654. doi:10.1016/S0006-3223(03)00295-6
[20] Oram Cardy, J.E., Flagg, E.J., Roberts, W. and Roberts, T.P. (2005) Delayed mismatch field for speech and non-speech sounds in children with autism. NeuroReport, 16, 521-525. doi:10.1097/00001756-200504040-00021
[21] Gomes, E., Rotta, N.T., Pedroso, F.S., Sleifer, P. and Danesi, M.C. (2004) Auditory hypersensitivity in children and teenagers with autistic spectrum disorder. Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria, 62, 797-801. doi:10.1590/S0004-282X2004000500011
[22] Schopler, E., Reichler, R.J. and Renner B.R. (1988) The Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS). Western Psychological Services, Los Angeles, CA.
[23] Leekam, S.R., Nieto, C., Libby, S.J., Wing, L. and Gould, J. (2007) Describing the sensory abnormalities of children and adults with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 37, 894-910. doi:10.1007/s10803-006-0218-7
[24] Mottron, L., Peretz, I. and Ménard, E. (2000) Local and global processing of music in high-functioning persons with autism: Beyond central coherence? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 41, 1057-1065. doi:10.1111/1469-7610.00693
[25] Frith, U., Happé and F. (1994) Autism: Beyond “theory of mind”. Cognition, 50, 115-132. doi:10.1016/0010-0277(94)90024-8
[26] Pfeiffer, B., Kinnealey, M., Reed, C. and Herzberg, G. (2005) Sensory modulation and affective disorders in children and adolescents with Asperger’s disorder. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 59, 335-345. doi:10.5014/ajot.59.3.335
[27] Baranek, G.T. (2002) Efficacy of sensory and motor interventions for children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 32, 397-422. doi:10.1023/A:1020541906063
[28] O’Neill, M. and Jones, R.S. (1997) Sensory-perceptual abnormalities in autism: A case for more research? Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 27, 283-293. doi:10.1023/A:1025850431170

Copyright © 2024 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc.

Creative Commons License

This work and the related PDF file are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.