Treatment for Children With Autism and Anxiety

Autism Clinical Trial

Official title: A Randomized Trial: Group Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Children With High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders and Anxiety

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

Children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are at high risk for developing significant anxiety symptoms. Cognitive behavior therapies (CBT) are frequently used for children with anxiety symptoms with good success. The purpose of the current study was to examine the efficacy of a family-focused group CBT program (Facing Your Fears [FYF]) compared to Treatment As Usual (TAU). Participants were randomized to either active treatment or TAU. It was hypothesized that children who completed the active treatment would demonstrate improvement in their anxiety symptoms relative to children in TAU.

Clinical Trial Description

Children with ASD and anxiety in our initial studies have displayed reductions in anxiety symptoms following the delivery of the FYF intervention. Given these initial successes, there are two primary purposes of this study. First, to train outpatient clinicians to fidelity on the FYF intervention for 8-14 year old children with high-functioning ASD and clinical anxiety. Second, to develop an optimal training model for learning the FYF intervention. The primary aims of Phase 1 are to develop a training manual and deliver a workshop on the FYF model to a group of outpatient clinicians in preparation for the clinicians to deliver the FYF intervention to four groups of children with ASD and anxiety. In Phase 2, the primary aims include comparing three instruction methods of learning to clinicians at three different outpatient clinics, by assessing increases in clinicians' acquisition of the intervention techniques and estimating the degree of reduction in anxiety symptoms on the primary outcome measures for the children with ASD. Instruction methods are: a) Manual, b) Workshop, c) Workshop-Plus. We hypothesize that clinicians receiving the Workshop-Plus (workshop plus ongoing consultation) condition will achieve treatment fidelity at a faster rate than clinicians receiving the other two instruction methods, and the children with ASD in the Workshop-Plus condition will display greater reductions in anxiety symptoms compared to the children in the other two conditions. ;

Study Design

Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment, Masking: Single Blind (Outcomes Assessor), Primary Purpose: Treatment

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Autism
• Autistic Disorder

• NCT number: NCT01727466
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: University of Colorado, Denver
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: August 2006
• Completion date: December 2009