Syst Rev. 2024 Jan 18;13(1):34. doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02440-w.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Children with autism spectrum disorders are frequent visitors to high technology environments, and their needs may differ from those of their typically developed peers. Procedures in high technology environments can constitute a challenge for these children and their parents since the environment presents many challenges relevant to the child’s impairments. This systematic review aimed to explore the experiences of children with autism spectrum disorders and their parents during procedures in a high technology environment.

METHODS: The following sources were searched for this systematic review: Cochrane CENTRAL Trials, CINAHL, Dentistry and Oral Sciences Source, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science Core Collection. The search terms included variants of the following concepts: (1) children with autism spectrum disorder and/or their parents and (2) anesthesia or radiographic departments. Publications were not limited by date or study design.

RESULT: Out of 13,389 bibliographic records, nine studies were eligible for synthesis. After another search in October 2022, one additional study was eligible for synthesis.None of the studies reported children’s experiences, and all ten reported their parents’ experiences. Only one study was conducted in a radiographic context. Parents’ experiences were both positive and negative and were categorized into two main categories: (1) challenges in a new environment and (2) health care professionals’ approaches.

CONCLUSION: Studies describing children’s experiences with procedures in high technology environments are lacking. The parents described a need for health care professionals to work in structured ways with their child and to be able to make suitable adaptations.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: This systematic review was registered in advance on the Open Science Framework, https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/5TXWJ .

PMID:38238824 | DOI:10.1186/s13643-023-02440-w