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Skin Biopsies in Autistic Children Find Cause for Touch Avoidance

5/29/2016

2 Comments

 

Ever since autism was first described in 1943, we have known that children don’t respond normally to affectionate touch; they do not seek it out and, in fact, they usually avoid it. We know that children have difficulty with other kinds of touch, too.  For example, avoiding gentle touch on the face and hands, and having unusual responses to pain and injury.

It has been very difficult to actually test the sense of touch in children with autism because testing requires communication and cooperation, both of which are delayed in autism.  So, until now, we haven’t actually known whether the sense of touch is damaged in children with autism.

Now, new research on mother-child bonding has shown us what we need to do to test touch in autism.  The research identified a class of tiny touch fibers in the skin, known as C-tactile fibers, that respond to affectionate touch.  These fibers also perceive other kinds of gentle touch and injury.  When these fibers are damaged, affectionate touch feels unpleasant, and perception of gentle touch and injury is disturbed. The way to test these fibers is to take a skin biopsy.  

Skin biopsy is a relatively new area of research, one that has mostly been done in adults. There are only a few reports of the normal number of fibers in typical children, and none in children with autism. This year, for the first time, we carried out skin biopsies on four children with autism between the ages of 8 and 11.  In all four children there was 50 percent loss of C-tactile fibers when compared with normal controls. 

The results are not enough to draw conclusions about all children with autism, and many more biopsies must be taken in both typically-developing and autistic children.  But for the first time, there is a logical explanation for the touch problems in children with autism, and a way of testing it. 

Read the study.

2 Comments
esther de ru
6/22/2016 08:26:18 pm

Please let us know exact title of study and author(s0, it is not easy to find otherwise. Thank you

Reply
Sabine link
8/28/2016 03:49:24 am

Hi Esther,
Here's the link to the study.

http://www.esciencecentral.org/journals/first-skin-biopsy-reports-in-children-with-autism-show-loss-of-ctactilefibers-2329-6895-1000262.php?aid=71059

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​Qigong Sensory Training Institute (QSTI) is a nonprofit organization that developed and teaches Qigong Sensory Treatment (QST) massage to parents and professionals. We are the only source in the world that teaches QST massage, and only organizations and individuals certified by us are qualified to teach and treat. See the list of certified practitioners here.
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  • Home
    • News
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    • Contact/Sign-up
    • Donate
    • Parent Training >
      • Is QST right for my child?
      • Getting Ready
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  • About
    • Media Resources >
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      • Other Therapies
      • Toxic Load
    • Dr. Silva
    • Staff & Board Members
    • Supporters
    • Privacy
  • Professional Training
    • Calendar of Courses
    • QST-1 Autism Parent Trainer Online Certification >
      • QST-1 course timeline
    • QST-2 Autism Therapist Certification >
      • QST-2 EN Mbarara, Uganda 2021
      • QST-2 Adelaide, Australia 2019
    • QST-2a Down Syndrome Therapist
    • QST-4 Master Trainer
    • Meet Our Master Trainers
    • QST Graduate Resources >
      • Graduate FAQ
  • Research
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    • Autism Resources
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    • Events, Training, and Coaching
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