Psychotherapy for Anxiety in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (TAASD)
Autism Spectrum Disorders, Autism, Asperger's Syndrome
About this trial
This is an interventional treatment trial for Autism Spectrum Disorders focused on measuring Autism spectrum disorders, Autism, Asperger's syndrome, Pervasive developmental disability - not otherwise specified, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Social phobia, Generalized anxiety disorder, Specific phobia, Separation anxiety disorder, Counseling, Cognitive-behavioral therapy, Psychotherapy
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
- Outpatient boys and girls with ASD between the ages 7-13 years at consent/assent.
- The child meets criteria for ASD.
- The child meets criteria for clinically significant anxiety symptoms.
- The child has a Full Scale and Verbal Comprehension Intelligence Quotient >70 as assessed on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV or another acceptable Intelligence Quotient test.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Receiving concurrent therapy targeting anxiety, social skills training with homework, or behavioral interventions (e.g., applied behavior analysis). This excludes academic tutoring, occupational therapy, speech therapy, school counseling that is no more than 60 minutes per week in duration, school aides, and social skills training groups that do not include homework and are no more than 60 minutes/week in duration.
- (a) Current clinically significant suicidality or (b) individuals who have engaged in suicidal behaviors within 6 months will be excluded and referred for appropriate clinical intervention.
- Child has been nonresponsive to an adequate trial of CBT for anxiety within the previous 2 years.
- Lifetime bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.
- Initiation of an antidepressant medication within 12 weeks before study enrollment or an antipsychotic medication 6 weeks before study enrollment or the child has changed the dose of an established medication within 8 weeks before study enrollment (4 weeks for antipsychotic) or during psychotherapy (unless the dose is lowered because of side effects).
Sites / Locations
- Rothman Center for Neuropsychiatry, University of South Florida
Arms of the Study
Arm 1
Arm 2
Arm 3
Experimental
Active Comparator
Other
Personalized Cognitive-behavioral therapy
Standard Practice Cognitive-behavioral therapy
Treatment as Usual
Personalized Cognitive-behavioral therapy involves 16 weekly individual therapy sessions, up to 90 minutes each, based on a treatment protocol that has been designed specifically for youth with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders.
Standard Practice Cognitive-behavioral therapy involves 16 weekly individual therapy sessions, up to 60 minutes each, based on a treatment protocol that represent the standard practice psychotherapy for anxiety that has been found to be effective in multiple trials in youngsters without autism spectrum disorders.
Participants randomized to the TAU condition will be instructed to continue receiving their prior interventions as recommended by their providers (e.g., psychotherapy, social skills training, behavioral interventions, family participation in family therapy or a parenting class, or pharmacological interventions) for a 16-week period. Treatment changes (e.g., medication increase, starting psychotherapy in community) are not prohibited and will be monitored. Thus, treatment will continue as it would in standard practice; and will be monitored through periodic study assessment.