Autism and Sensory Integration Dysfunction (Sensory Processing Disorder)
Many wonder… are Autism and Sensory Integration Dysfunction (now called Sensory Processing Disorder) the same? Are they related? Do you have to have SPD to have Autism? And vice versa?
These are great questions! the research says they are indeed two separate and distinct disorders.
Both children with autistic disorders and those with sensory processing disorder show difficulties with high-level tasks involving the integration of different brain areas. These include complex sensory functions and also emotional regulation. Typically, though, the deficits seen in children with autism, with greater sparing of higher-order functions in areas like language, social affiliation, and empathy… The majority of children with SPD are not autistic because they do not experience breakdowns in the connections that control social affiliation and emotional empathy.
Like children with autism, children with sensory processing disorder typically show signs of problems with the long-distance connections that integrate different areas of their brains, with the cerebellum (which helps to regulate and ‘smooth out’ the brain’s different perceptions and responses), and with the frontal lobes (which help coordinate brain activities).”
Although there are differences between Autism and Sensory Integration Dysfunction (or SPD as it is now called), there are more similarities.
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