Autistic children and the journey of integration through the combination of traditional medicine

Combining traditional medicine with language intervention, the Central Acupuncture Hospital is opening up hope for many autistic children. Not only has their communication skills improved significantly, many children after treatment have been able to integrate into the community, even confidently going to school like their peers.

Slow to react to the world around him, with "non-standard" behaviors, P.D.D (5.5 years old, Lao Cai) was brought to the Central Acupuncture Hospital for treatment when he was only 33 months old. After more than 2 years of intervention, he has made remarkable progress.

Mr. K. (D's grandfather) shared: "When he was nearly 3 years old, the family noticed that he had unusual symptoms such as not being able to speak, not turning his head when called (like being deaf), limited eye contact, walking on tiptoe, liking to spin in circles, liking to climb and showing signs of mental retardation... so the family took him to the Central Acupuncture Hospital for examination and treatment."

After a few conversations, Mr. K. recounted that D. had been familiar with the hospital since he was a child. He, his grandmother, father, and mother took turns taking D. to Hanoi .

Each treatment period for D. is about 21 days. Every day, D. receives acupuncture, massage, acupressure, speaking lessons, communication lessons... Each day that passes is a mental challenge for the whole family, partly because of love for the child, partly because of the turmoil in life.

The children's daily progress is a motivation for their families and the doctors who treat them.

After the treatment, by the age of 4, the child could speak, respond to calls, reduce hyperactivity, and look at the person opposite when asked. The teacher said that during the intervention sessions, the child also improved a lot.

“From a child who could not speak, had the intelligence of a child of only a few months old, and could run around uncontrollably, after nearly 3 years of continuous treatment, he has made a lot of progress. He can read letters, add and subtract. At this point, the family can stop treating him, but we are determined to continue treating him so that this August he can go to first grade with his friends,” Mr. K. happily told us.

Inheritance and innovation from traditional medicine

At the Central Acupuncture Hospital, over the years, thousands of pediatric patients have been admitted to combine acupuncture in the intervention of children with autism spectrum disorders.

Master, Doctor Nguyen Tuan Anh, Deputy Director of the Center for Treatment and Care of Autistic and Cerebral Palsy Children (Central Acupuncture Hospital) said that autism is a lifelong developmental disability that severely affects children's relationships and social communication, imagination and behavior. Depending on the level of autism, there are different effects and different manifestations.

Dr. Tuan Anh affirmed: Currently, there is no intervention method that is considered optimal for children with autism spectrum disorder. Therefore, treatment and recovery support methods are used in combination to bring the highest efficiency to patients.

According to Dr. Tuan Anh, traditional medicine helps regulate yin and yang to restore the balance of organ function. Depending on the specific clinical condition, acupuncture experts will select acupuncture points according to the treatment regimen. Explaining this, Dr. Nguyen Tuan Anh said that each acupuncture point is related to one or more organs through the meridians, so the function of each acupuncture point is different.

Specialist Doctor I Nguyen The Dung, Director of the Center for Treatment and Care of Children with Autism and Cerebral Palsy, supports patients.

Stimulating acupuncture points can regulate the physiological function of internal organs and correct pathological changes through a series of mechanisms, thereby alleviating symptoms. Stimulating these acupuncture points can regulate the cerebral cortex and electrical activity of the brain, promote blood circulation to the brain, help alertness and improve cognitive ability.

In addition, based on the ASD dialectic related to abnormal functions of the heart, liver, spleen, and kidneys, doctors will perform acupuncture on acupuncture points corresponding to each clinical disease to help children reduce stress, regulate emotions, improve concentration, improve sensory-motor coordination, help children increase their ability to interact with the environment, improve social communication skills, improve deep sleep, and reduce abnormal behaviors...

Children are treated with traditional medicine methods such as acupuncture, combined with non-drug methods and traditional medicine. At the same time, the Center implements rehabilitation activities such as speech therapy, occupational therapy, behavioral intervention (ABA), sensory integration and inclusiveeducation .

Treatment for autistic children here combines 6 methods, including: electroacupuncture, hydroacupuncture, acupressure massage, auricular acupuncture, thread implantation, and educational intervention.

Acupuncture is the use of needles to puncture acupoints to promote blood circulation, clear the meridians, and restore the balance of yin and yang in the body. The core purpose of acupuncture is to regulate the flow of qi, because when qi moves, blood moves. The stronger the flow of qi, the more effective the treatment will be.

Doctor Nguyen Tuan Anh,
Deputy Director of the Center for Treatment and Care of Autistic and Cerebral Palsy Children (Central Acupuncture Hospital).

Acupuncture is the use of needles to puncture acupoints to promote blood circulation, clear the meridians, and restore the balance of yin and yang in the body. The core purpose of acupuncture is to regulate the flow of qi, because when qi moves, blood moves. The stronger the flow of qi, the more effective the treatment will be.

However, young children, especially those with autism spectrum disorder, are often hyperactive, so it is often more difficult to ask them to sit in one place for a long time for acupuncture. Therefore, when treating autistic children in the first days, doctors can use fewer needles and not connect the electroacupuncture machine so that the children can gradually get used to it and adapt.

In addition, during the acupuncture treatment, parents can interact with their children by talking, reading stories, expressing emotions, etc. to help children feel secure in cooperating with the doctors. Typically, each acupuncture treatment for children with autism spectrum disorder lasts 20 days and between each acupuncture treatment, the child will rest for 7-10 days.

The functional rooms are systematically arranged, from assessment-consultation, individual intervention, group intervention to family support, helping to build a suitable intervention roadmap for each child.

In addition, doctors also use electroacupuncture, hydroacupuncture (inserting brain and nerve tonics into acupuncture points), ear acupuncture and the method of implanting absorbable threads into acupuncture points to increase treatment effectiveness.

The earlier the disease is detected, the more effective the treatment.

Over the past 14 years, the Central Acupuncture Hospital has treated many cases of children with autism. Previously, the Hospital also treated many children with speech delay, deafness, cerebral palsy, encephalitis, etc. since the 80s and 90s of the last century and had certain results.

From thousands of autistic patients who have been treated at the hospital, Dr. Tuan Anh said that the treatment and care methods, especially acupuncture for autistic children, are bringing positive results, especially for children who are treated early from 18-20 months old. The earlier the disease is detected, the more effective the treatment will be.

It is necessary to combine many methods to treat autistic children.

According to Dr. Tuan Anh, autism has the most prominent sign of slow speech and is often accompanied by intellectual, cognitive, motor and emotional decline.

Symptoms of children with autism spectrum disorder:

12 months old, can't babble, can't point, doesn't respond when called by name.

16 months old, child does not say single words, not interested in children's toys.

24 months old cannot say 2 word sentences, avoids eye contact and does not look directly at the person opposite.

Symptoms of autism spectrum disorder in children often appear before the age of 3. Specifically, at 12 months old, the child does not know how to babble, does not know how to point, does not respond when called by name. At 16 months old, the child does not say single words, is not interested in children's toys... At 24 months old, the child cannot say 2-word sentences, avoids eye contact, does not look directly at the person opposite.

"Autistic children often show signs of rebellion, hyperactivity, lack of cooperation, opposition, unusual attachment to a certain toy, over-sensitivity to touch and hearing, unusual finger or body movements, blinking, swallowing without chewing, walking on tiptoes, spinning around..." , Dr. Tuan Anh noted the signs of autism in children.

According to Dr. Tuan Anh, the golden period of intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder is early intervention as soon as defects or abnormalities are discovered in the child's development. The earlier the intervention, the more effective it is, often combining many methods for treatment.

Intervention for autistic children is a long-term process, requiring perseverance and continuity, and results cannot be expected overnight or after just a few months. Therefore, parents need to determine the spirit of persistent companionship with their children on the path of development, because the family's understanding and patience are an important foundation to help children gradually progress and integrate into the community.

LOYALITY - DO THOA

Source: https://nhandan.vn/tre-tu-ky-va-hanh-trinh-hoa-nhap-nho-ket-hop-y-hoc-co-truyen-post877463.html