Autism and Motor Skills

Motor skills are necessary for every part of life. Playing games, writing a term paper, even eating food requires motor skills. Motor skills are muscles working together to achieve a common goal. Gross motor are large movements and involve large muscle groups. Gross motor skills include things like kicking a ball or sitting in a chair. Fine motor skills are smaller movements and involve smaller muscle groups. Fine motor skills include things like writing with a pencil or holding a spoon. The effects of Autism vary per person and therefor the motor skills effected individually. Aiden has some slight struggles with motor skills. Aiden did not kick a ball until he was about eighteen months old. His current struggle is with sitting on the floor properly. Aiden has adopted a technique therapists call W sitting.

W sitting should be corrected with the help of an Occupational Therapist. This type of sitting indicates weak core muscles and is bad for the knees and hips. 

I have encountered parents of Autistic children who have no issues with motor skills, others have trouble with either fine or gross, and others have trouble with both types simultaneously. An Oregon State researcher recently conducted a study of 159 children ages 12-33 months. One hundred and ten of these children were diagnosed with Autism and 49 were typically developing children. This researcher found that children with ASD were, on average, one year behind their typical peers in fine motor skills and about six months behind in gross motor skills. Motor skill delay is not related to intelligence. This research indicates we should be incorporating motor skill development in early intervention treatments. OSU's Study

In 2013 a study proving motor skill delay is directly tied to Autism was published. This research shows that motor skill delay is, in fact, a symptom of Autism and not a separate issue as scientists once believed. Researchers from the Washington University of School and Medicine in Saint Louis studied the motor skills of 144 children from 67 families. Some of these children were siblings in the same home. Researchers found that children with ASD suffered with motor skill deficiencies at the rate of 83%, compared to only 6% of typical siblings. Where the impact really sets in is when children with ASD were compared to their own siblings and the rate stayed about the same. Sibling studies are important since these children are in the same environment and exposed to the same things. The sibling studies in this case show that motor skill deficits are not a separate genetic issue, but are directly related to ASD. 

Dr. Robert Melillo has long been working to connect motor skills directly to Autism. He asserts that improving motor skills will decrease the symptoms of learning and behavioral disorders. His and other studies show that neuro-behavioral disorders, like Autism, are the result of  common under connectivity of electrical activity in the brain, specifically between the two hemispheres. This kind of research could be valuable to understanding how the brain is wired in Autistic individuals. Multiple studies have recently emerged showing that the brain neurons are disorganized in Autism so it is not impossible to believe that the connections between the two sides are lacking. To read more about the WU research or to learn about Dr. Robert Melillo's clinics please read here: Brain Centers

How do you help motor skill development? Patience. Be patient with your child or loved one. Try to break down the tasks into smaller steps, then build on them. An Occupational Therapist can immensely help with motor skill development. They will tailor a plan to your loved one's individual needs. To read more about Motor Skills in Autism please feel free to read Motor Skills in Autistic Children.

I hope this blog has helped you to understand why motor skills are important and how they are linked to Autism. As always we are here for you. If there is a specific topic you are interested in please feel free to comment here or on our Facebook page. While your on our page, please give us a like, to see what we post next! 

Wishing you continued health and happiness on your Autism journey.