Brief report: response to National Institutes of Health report.

The report was a good document but unfortunately it did not adequately address the need to do research on sensory problems in autism. As a person with autism I am very concerned about this. A better understanding of sensory problems will lead to more effective treatments. Research in this area will explain why an intensive behavior program, such as that proposed by Lovaas (1987), will work with one child and fail with another. There is also a need to research the best therapies for sensory dysfunction. Sensory processing and attention shifting are abnormal in autism (Ciesielski, Courchesne, & Elmasian, 1990; Omitz 1985; WainwrightSharp & Bryson, 1993). Certain types of sensory input such as flickering fluorescent lights will increase repetitive behavior (Colman, Frankel, Ritvo, & Freeman, 1976). Reports from people with autism clearly show that sights, sounds, and sensations that do not bother normal people may be painful and confusing. Sound sensitivity and intense discomfort caused by certain sounds is reported frequently (Bemporad, 1979; Grandin, 1992a, 1995; Grandin & Scariano, 1986; Stehli, 1991; White & White, 1987). Autistics also report that they sometimes have difficulty understanding speech and that hearing may fade in and out (Jolifee, Lakesdown, & Robinson, 1992; Williams, 1994; Sinclair, 1992; White & White, 1987). An auditory training treatment which consists of listening to electronically modified music has reduced sound sensitivity and decreased behavior problems in individuals with autism (Rimland & Edelson, 1994, 1995). Teachers and parents both maintain that sensory integration therapy is helpful. The method was developed by Ayres (1979) and consists of ap-