#85. Pain Amongst Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Oct 20, 2021

How does one reconcile the facts that DSM diagnostic criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder includes pain insensitivity and a high pain threshold,  while these children report that their clothes feel like sand paper and their fingers while shampooing feel like sharp metal? 

Join me in this episode to look at where the truth lies, with emerging evidence that helps us better understand the relationship between pain and ASD, what if anything is different about pain among children with ASD, and how we should approach pain issues amongst these children!

 

Takeaways in This Episode

• What constitutes Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Prevalence of ASD
• Historical beliefs around ASD and pain, and contributing factors for those beliefs 
• Current and emerging literature  around ASD and pain
• What Stimulus over-reactivity is and how that plays out in ASD
• Genetics evidence around ASD and pain
• Summarizing ASD and pain among children and considerations for accurate assessment and effective treatment

 

Links

Listen to other helpful and related podcast episodes -

Episode #84. Post-Concussive headache and Symptom Management in Children with Dr. Windsor

Episode #63. Integrative Pediatric Pain Management with Dr. Lonnie Zeltzer

Episode #81. How to Choose the Right Pain Treatments

Episode #72. Real vs. Fake: The Look of Pain

Episode #75. Role of Gut-Brain Axis in Pediatric Pain

Proactive Pain Solutions Physicians Academy

Clinicians Pain Evaluation Toolkit

Proactive Pain Solutions