AUTHOR=Shen Xin , Huang Peiying , Liu Qian , Guo Yin , Zheng Lan 

TITLE=Telehealth based parental support over 6 months improves physical activity and sleep quality in children with autism: a randomized controlled trial

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pediatrics

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pediatrics/articles/10.3389/fped.2024.1496827

DOI=10.3389/fped.2024.1496827

ISSN=2296-2360

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Purpose</title><p>Sleep disturbances are prevalent in autistic children. The emergence of telehealth offers new possibilities for remote professional intervention. By combining telehealth with parental support, this study aims to explore a novel family-based model to enhance moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and improve sleep quality in children with autism.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>Thirty-four autistic children (mean age = 15.7 years) were randomly assigned to either a 6-month intervention group or a control group. Both groups received standard physical education classes at school. The intervention group received additional after-school telehealth support. MVPA and sleep quality were assessed 1 week before the intervention and at the 6-month follow-up.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>After 6 months, children in the intervention group nearly doubled their daily MVPA compared to the control group (Cohen's <italic>d</italic> = 8.34, CI<sub>95%</sub> = 6.17–10.52). Actigraphy-assessed sleep efficiency was notably higher (<italic>d</italic> = 2.35, CI<sub>95%</sub> = 1.44–3.26), and there were reductions in wake time (<italic>d</italic> = 1.65, CI<sub>95%</sub> = 0.84–2.46), sleep fragmentation (<italic>d</italic> = 0.80, CI<sub>95%</sub> = 0.07–1.52), and sleep latency (<italic>d</italic> = 0.82, CI<sub>95%</sub> = 0.09–1.54) were all reduced. These improvements in objective sleep metrics were corroborated by subjective assessments using the Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (<italic>d</italic> = 0.86, CI<sub>95%</sub> = 0.13–1.59).</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusions</title><p>Telehealth combined with parental support addresses barriers to enhancing health behaviors at home. This innovative model not only improves after-school MVPA and sleep quality in autistic children but also holds significant potential for benefiting other populations requiring remote support.</p></sec><sec><title>Clinical Trial Registration</title><p><uri xlink:href="https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06444659?id=NCT06444659&amp;rank=1" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06444659?id=NCT06444659&amp;rank=1</uri> (NCT06444659).</p></sec>