Influência do exercício físico enquanto antecedente das atividades acadêmicas de crianças com transtorno do espectro do autismo

Abstract

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) need to be engaged in the practice of physical exercise because the effects of intervention have been identified as a promising strategy for specialized care, in educational and clinical spaces, for the population in reducing primary symptoms and comorbidities. The aim of the study was to identify the influence of a physical exercise program on stereotyped behaviors and engagement time in academic activities of children with ASD in the context of early childhood education. An intervention study was carried out with two data collection moments, pre and post. Participants were 12 children, 7 male and 5 female, mean age and standard deviation of 51/±14 months, from the Colégio de Aplicação Telma Vitória (CAPTV), located on the Campus of the Federal University of Alagoas, city of Maceió - Alagoas. The study was carried out: a) application of scales to characterize the profile of symptoms and level of intensity of the participants' ASD; b) thirty observations of the time spent engaged in table activities; c) application of ten intervention sessions with strength, coordination and balance exercises; moderate intensity and twice weekly frequency of 60 minutes. Items a and b were reapplied post-intervention and d) the results were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation (SD) for quantitative variables and absolute (n) and relative (%) frequency distribution, as well as their respective 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) for qualitative variables. The results showed that only six children obtained pre- and post-intervention results for the ATA and CARS characterization scales, demonstrating improvements for five of the participants in the total score for the ATA scale (34±2.8/29.3±5.2) and CARS (43.5±5.4/37.5±6.5). There were improvements for five of the six children in the subscales related to the profile of repetitive/stereotypical behaviors (8.2±1.3/4.8±1.6), and a change in the level of support for one of the children (5S and 1LM / 4S and 2LM). The mean engagement times showed substantial improvements pre and post (28.1±21.3/186,6±182,1). The study showed that strength, coordination and balance exercises have a positive influence on repetitive/stereotypical behavior and engagement time in academic tasks, corroborating previous studies.