J Korean Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry.  2014 Jun;25(2):73-81. 10.5765/jkacap.2014.25.2.73.

Use of Various Treatment Modalities for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Mental Retardation

• Kim KM
• Choi IC
• Lee SB
• Lee KK
• Paik KC
• Lee JY
• Lim MH

• KMID: 2291605
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5765/jkacap.2014.25.2.73

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of various treatment modalities including pharmacotherapy, education-behavior therapy, and complementary alternative treatment for children with mental retardation (MR) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Korea.
METHODS
The sample consisted of 50 parents who have children with MR (N=28) or ASD (N=22), 38 boys, 12 girls ; mean age 14.06 (4.14) years old. A questionnaire was composed of the experienced modality, duration, cost, satisfaction etc.
RESULTS
According to the results, 56.0%, 100.0%, and 36.0% of children with MR or ASD have experienced pharmacological treatment, educational-behavioral therapy and complementary alternative medicine (CAM), respectively. Children who experienced education-behavioral therapy and CAM experienced 3.52 kinds of education-behavioral therapy and 2.78 kinds of CAM, respectively. Monthly cost of pharmacological treatment was lowest among three modality categories. Regarding treatment satisfaction by parental report, the lowest score was recorded fir CAM.
CONCLUSION
Parents who have a child with MR or ASD are trying many treatment modalities and feeling the burden of their treatment.

Keyword

Mental Retardation; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Pharmacological Therapy; Educational Behavioral Therapy; Complementary Alternative Medicine

MeSH Terms

Child
Autism Spectrum Disorder*
Complementary Therapies
Drug Therapy
Female
Humans
Intellectual Disability*
Korea
Parents
Surveys and Questionnaires