Asperger's (Treatments)

Treatment focuses on the three main symptoms: poor communication skills, obsessive or repetitive routines, and physical clumsiness.

An effective treatment program builds on the child's interests, offers a predictable schedule, teaches tasks as a series of simple steps, actively engages the child's attention in highly structured activities, and provides regular reinforcement of behavior. This includes:

• Social skills training: teaches the necessary skills to interact more successfully with other children
• Cognitive behavioral therapy: talk therapy that helps to manage their emotions better and cut back on obsessive interests and repetitive routines
• Medication for co-existing conditions such as depression and anxiety
• Occupational or physical therapy for children with sensory integration problems or poor motor coordination
• Specialized speech/language therapy to help with the pragmatics of speech
• Parental training of behavioral techniques and support

Sources

• American Psychiatric Association.  Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition
• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• National Institutes of Health, US Department of Health and Human Services
• National Institutes of Health - National Library of Medicine