| Title: |
Effectiveness of Noise-Attenuating Headphones on Physiological Responses for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders |
| Authors: |
Pfeiffer, B; Stein Duker, L; Murphy, AM; Shui, C |
| Publication Year: |
2019 |
| Subject Terms: |
hyperacusis; autism spectrum disorder (ASD); noise-attenuating headphones; noise canceling headphone; electrodermal responses (EDR); autonomic nervous system; stress; anxiety |
| Description: |
© Copyright © 2019 Pfeiffer, Stein Duker, Murphy and Shui. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the proof of concept of an intervention to decrease sympathetic activation as measured by skin conductivity (electrodermal activity, EDA) in children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and auditory hypersensitivity (hyperacusis). In addition, researchers examined if the intervention provided protection against the negative effects of decibel level of environmental noises on electrodermal measures between interventions. The feasibility of implementation and outcome measures within natural environments were evaluated. Method: A single-subject multi-treatment design was used with six children, aged 8–16 years, with a form of Autism (i.e., Autism, PDD-NOS). Participants used in-ear (IE) and over-ear (OE) headphones for two randomly sequenced treatment phases. Each child completed four phases: (1) a week of baseline data collection; (2) a week of an intervention; (3) a week of no intervention; and (4) a week of the other intervention. Empatica E4 wristbands collected EDA data. Data was collected on 16–20 occasions per participant, with five measurements per phase. Results: Separated tests for paired study phases suggested that regardless of intervention type, noise attenuating headphones led to a significance difference in both skin conductance levels (SCL) and frequency of non-specific conductance responses (NS-SCRs) between the baseline measurement and subsequent phases. Overall, SCL and NS-SCR frequency significantly decreased between baseline and the first intervention phase. A protective effect of the intervention was tested by collapsing intervention results into three phases. Slope correlation suggested constant SCL and NS-SCR frequency after initial use of the headphones regardless of the increase in environmental noises. A subsequent analysis of the quality of EDA data identified that later phases of data collection were associated with better data quality. Conclusion: Many children with ASD ... |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| File Description: |
65- |
| Language: |
English |
| Relation: |
Frontiers Media SA; Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience; JR1HY (isidoc); 31798424 (pubmed); http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12613/4525 |
| Availability: |
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12613/4525 |
| Rights: |
CC BY ; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.2743E57 |
| Database: |
BASE |