TOP 62 - Effect of a Gymnastics Program on Fine and Gross Motor Development in Children with Autism

Publication Number: 3793.TOP 62

Kaitlin P. Hardy, Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters, Virginia Beach, VA, United States; Gwendolyn George, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States; Jamie Levin, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Virginia Beach, VA, United States; Trevor DiGerolamo, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States; MIchael Hurst, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States; Miasha O'Neal, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States; Ismail El Moudden, Old dominion university, Norfolk, VA, United States; Sonia Khurana, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States

Background: Motor impairments are increasingly recognized as a core feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with estimates suggesting that up to 87% of children with ASD exhibit significant motor delays. Despite their prevalence, motor difficulties in children with ASD are often deprioritized in intervention planning. Child participation in sports has consistently been linked to improvements in motor skills and executive functioning. Gymnastics offers a unique developmental platform for motor skill acquisition due to its emphasis on controlled movement, bilateral coordination, and body awareness. Accordingly, gymnastics may be a promising modality to address motor challenges in children with ASD.

Objective: This study evaluates the effect of an 8-week-long, weekly gymnastics intervention on motor outcomes in children with ASD as assessed by Movement Assessment Battery for Children, 3rd edition (MABC-3).

Design/Methods: This controlled clinical trial divides 22 children diagnosed with ASD ages 3-12 years into an intervention group (N=11) or control group (N=11). Motor assessment for both groups was completed at baseline using MABC-3. Additionally, parents of all participants completed the Autism Family Experience Questionnaire (AFEQ). Intervention subjects then underwent 8 weekly sessions of gymnastics intervention. Duration of each session was 45 minutes and included 12 minute long stations including a Balance Beam Rotation, Floor Exercise and Vault Rotation, Parallel Bars and Rings Rotation, and 9 minutes of trampoline and foam pit. To maintain intervention fidelity, stations were set up weekly by the same instructors, and a checklist ensured uniformity. After eight weeks, motor outcomes were reassessed with MABC-3 and parents completed a post-intervention AFEQ. All assessments were video-recorded and coded by a blinded scorer unaware of group assignment.
Mixed-effects models will be used to analyze MABC-3 and AFEQ data. This will account for the repeated-measures design and appropriately handle missing data. Group (intervention vs. control) and Time (pre vs. post), along with their interaction term will be used to assess differential treatment effects. Participants will be modeled as random effects to account for within-subject correlations across time. The assumption of sphericity will be maintained for all analyses, and statistical significance is set at α = 0.05.
Data analysis is in progress. We anticipate improvements in balance and overall motor score for the intervention group compared to control based on evidence from existing gymnastics and sport interventions in children with ASD.