App-based meditation habits maintain reductions in depression symptoms among autistic adults / Chad STECHER in Autism, 28-6 (June 2024)  

Public ISBD [article]  inAutism > 28-6 (June 2024) . - p.1487-1502 Titre : App-based meditation habits maintain reductions in depression symptoms among autistic adults Type de document : Texte imprimé et/ou numérique Auteurs : Chad STECHER, Auteur ; Broc A. PAGNI, Auteur ; Sara CLOONAN, Auteur ; Schuyler VINK, Auteur ; Ethan HILL, Auteur ; Destiny OGBEAMA, Auteur ; Shanna DELANEY, Auteur ; B. Blair BRADEN, Auteur Article en page(s) : p.1487-1502 Langues : Anglais (eng) Mots-clés : anchoring  depression  meditation  mindfulness  mobile health Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : Mobile app-based meditation is an effective self-care solution for depression, but limited evidence exists for the long-term benefits among autistic adults, who are at increased risk of experiencing depression. The primary goal of this study was to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of incorporating habit training into an app-based meditation intervention to maintain reductions in depressive symptoms among autistic adults. Participants were randomized to an App Only (who only received access to the meditation app), App?+?Habit Training (who received the meditation app and instructions for anchoring their app-based meditation to an existing routine), or a waitlist control group. All participants completed questionnaires at baseline, post-intervention, and 6 months post-intervention, and responded to SMS ecological momentary assessments regarding their meditation practice during the 8-week intervention and an 8-week follow-up period. The results show that the App?+?Habit Training group reported significantly more days with meditation per week during and after the intervention (p < 0.05) and also experienced a larger decrease in depression symptoms post-intervention and 6 months later (p < 0.05) relative to the control group. These findings demonstrate that app-based meditation habits are an effective self-care solution for autistic adults with depression, and anchoring is a promising strategy for establishing other healthy habits among autistic adults. Lay Abstract Existing research has identified an increased risk of depression among autistic adults, which can negatively impact their adaptive functioning abilities and socioeconomic outcomes. Mobile app-based meditation is a feasible, accessible, and effective self-care solution for depression among neurotypical adults, but there is limited evidence for the long-term benefits of app-based meditation among autistic adults. Habits are a key behavioral strategy for maintaining behavior change, and anchoring is one effective habit formation intervention that has yet to be tested among autistic adults. This study demonstrates that it is both feasible and effective to integrate the anchoring habit formation strategy into an app-based meditation intervention for establishing meditation habits among autistic adults. In addition, the study shows that app-based meditation habits were successful at maintaining reductions in depressive symptoms over 6 months. These results demonstrate the power of anchoring-based habit formation interventions for establishing healthy habits among autistic adults, which offers a promising behavioral intervention technique for establishing other healthy habits among autistic adults. The study also shows that app-based meditation habits are an effective long-term self-care solution for managing depressive symptoms among autistic adults that should be used by mental health providers and policymakers. Future research should test this combined anchoring and app-based meditation intervention technique among larger samples of autistic adults and over longer durations to better understand the mechanisms underlying the success of this intervention. En ligne : https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/13623613231200679 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=529 [article] App-based meditation habits maintain reductions in depression symptoms among autistic adults [Texte imprimé et/ou numérique] / Chad STECHER, Auteur ; Broc A. PAGNI, Auteur ; Sara CLOONAN, Auteur ; Schuyler VINK, Auteur ; Ethan HILL, Auteur ; Destiny OGBEAMA, Auteur ; Shanna DELANEY, Auteur ; B. Blair BRADEN, Auteur . - p.1487-1502. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Autism > 28-6 (June 2024) . - p.1487-1502 Mots-clés : anchoring  depression  meditation  mindfulness  mobile health Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : Mobile app-based meditation is an effective self-care solution for depression, but limited evidence exists for the long-term benefits among autistic adults, who are at increased risk of experiencing depression. The primary goal of this study was to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of incorporating habit training into an app-based meditation intervention to maintain reductions in depressive symptoms among autistic adults. Participants were randomized to an App Only (who only received access to the meditation app), App?+?Habit Training (who received the meditation app and instructions for anchoring their app-based meditation to an existing routine), or a waitlist control group. All participants completed questionnaires at baseline, post-intervention, and 6 months post-intervention, and responded to SMS ecological momentary assessments regarding their meditation practice during the 8-week intervention and an 8-week follow-up period. The results show that the App?+?Habit Training group reported significantly more days with meditation per week during and after the intervention (p < 0.05) and also experienced a larger decrease in depression symptoms post-intervention and 6 months later (p < 0.05) relative to the control group. These findings demonstrate that app-based meditation habits are an effective self-care solution for autistic adults with depression, and anchoring is a promising strategy for establishing other healthy habits among autistic adults. Lay Abstract Existing research has identified an increased risk of depression among autistic adults, which can negatively impact their adaptive functioning abilities and socioeconomic outcomes. Mobile app-based meditation is a feasible, accessible, and effective self-care solution for depression among neurotypical adults, but there is limited evidence for the long-term benefits of app-based meditation among autistic adults. Habits are a key behavioral strategy for maintaining behavior change, and anchoring is one effective habit formation intervention that has yet to be tested among autistic adults. This study demonstrates that it is both feasible and effective to integrate the anchoring habit formation strategy into an app-based meditation intervention for establishing meditation habits among autistic adults. In addition, the study shows that app-based meditation habits were successful at maintaining reductions in depressive symptoms over 6 months. These results demonstrate the power of anchoring-based habit formation interventions for establishing healthy habits among autistic adults, which offers a promising behavioral intervention technique for establishing other healthy habits among autistic adults. The study also shows that app-based meditation habits are an effective long-term self-care solution for managing depressive symptoms among autistic adults that should be used by mental health providers and policymakers. Future research should test this combined anchoring and app-based meditation intervention technique among larger samples of autistic adults and over longer durations to better understand the mechanisms underlying the success of this intervention. En ligne : https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/13623613231200679 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=529

Effects of age on the hippocampus and verbal memory in adults with autism spectrum disorder: Longitudinal versus cross-sectional findings / Broc A. PAGNI in Autism Research, 15-10 (October 2022)  

Public ISBD [article]  inAutism Research > 15-10 (October 2022) . - p.1810-1823 Titre : Effects of age on the hippocampus and verbal memory in adults with autism spectrum disorder: Longitudinal versus cross-sectional findings Type de document : Texte imprimé et/ou numérique Auteurs : Broc A. PAGNI, Auteur ; Melissa J. M. WALSH, Auteur ; Edward OFORI, Auteur ; Kewei CHEN, Auteur ; Georgia SULLIVAN, Auteur ; Jocelyn ALVAR, Auteur ; Leanna MONAHAN, Auteur ; Nicolas GUERITHAULT, Auteur ; Shanna DELANEY, Auteur ; B. Blair BRADEN, Auteur Article en page(s) : p.1810-1823 Langues : Anglais (eng) Mots-clés : aging/ASD in adults  executive  functioning  hippocampus  longitudinal data analysis  magnetic resonance imaging - structural  memory  neuroimaging Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : Research studying aging in adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is growing, but longitudinal work is needed. Autistic adults have increased risk of dementia, altered hippocampal volumes and fornix integrity, and verbal memory difficulties compared with neurotypical (NT) adults. This study examined longitudinal aging in middle-age adults with ASD versus a matched NT group, and compared findings with cross-sectional age effects across a broad adult age range. Participants were 194 adults with (n = 106; 74 male) and without (n = 88; 52 male) ASD, ages 18-71. Participants (n = 45; 40-70 age range) with two visits (2-3 years apart) were included in a longitudinal analysis. Hippocampal volume, fornix fractional anisotropy (FA), and verbal memory were measured via T1-weighted MRI, diffusion tensor imaging, and the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, respectively. Longitudinal mixed models were used for hippocampal system variables and reliable change index categories were used for Auditory Verbal Learning Test analyses. Multivariate regression was used for cross-sectional analyses. Middle-age adults with ASD had greater longitudinal hippocampal volume loss and were more likely to show clinically meaningful decline in short-term memory, compared with NT. In contrast, cross-sectional associations between increasing age and worsening short-term memory were identified in NT, but not autistic adults. Reduced fornix FA and long-term memory in ASD were found across the broad cross-sectional age range. These preliminary longitudinal findings suggest accelerated hippocampal volume loss in ASD and slightly higher rates of clinically-meaningful decline in verbal short-term memory. Contradictory cross-sectional and longitudinal results underscore the importance of longitudinal aging research in autistic adults. LAY SUMMARY: Autistic adults have increased risk of dementia, differences in brain memory structures, and difficulty with memory compared with neurotypical (NT) adults. However, there are no publications that follow the same middle-age autistic adults over time to see how their brain and memory change. Our preliminary findings in a small middle-age autism sample suggest a key memory brain structure, the hippocampus, may shrink faster over 2-3 years compared with NT, and short-term memory may become more challenging for some. Across a broad adult range, autistic adults also had reduced integrity of connections to the hippocampus and greater challenges with long-term memory. In our larger sample across a broad age range, the results did not hint at this aforementioned pattern of accelerated aging. This underscores the importance of more aging research in autism, and especially research where people are followed over time. En ligne : http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aur.2797 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=488 [article] Effects of age on the hippocampus and verbal memory in adults with autism spectrum disorder: Longitudinal versus cross-sectional findings [Texte imprimé et/ou numérique] / Broc A. PAGNI, Auteur ; Melissa J. M. WALSH, Auteur ; Edward OFORI, Auteur ; Kewei CHEN, Auteur ; Georgia SULLIVAN, Auteur ; Jocelyn ALVAR, Auteur ; Leanna MONAHAN, Auteur ; Nicolas GUERITHAULT, Auteur ; Shanna DELANEY, Auteur ; B. Blair BRADEN, Auteur . - p.1810-1823. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Autism Research > 15-10 (October 2022) . - p.1810-1823 Mots-clés : aging/ASD in adults  executive  functioning  hippocampus  longitudinal data analysis  magnetic resonance imaging - structural  memory  neuroimaging Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : Research studying aging in adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is growing, but longitudinal work is needed. Autistic adults have increased risk of dementia, altered hippocampal volumes and fornix integrity, and verbal memory difficulties compared with neurotypical (NT) adults. This study examined longitudinal aging in middle-age adults with ASD versus a matched NT group, and compared findings with cross-sectional age effects across a broad adult age range. Participants were 194 adults with (n = 106; 74 male) and without (n = 88; 52 male) ASD, ages 18-71. Participants (n = 45; 40-70 age range) with two visits (2-3 years apart) were included in a longitudinal analysis. Hippocampal volume, fornix fractional anisotropy (FA), and verbal memory were measured via T1-weighted MRI, diffusion tensor imaging, and the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, respectively. Longitudinal mixed models were used for hippocampal system variables and reliable change index categories were used for Auditory Verbal Learning Test analyses. Multivariate regression was used for cross-sectional analyses. Middle-age adults with ASD had greater longitudinal hippocampal volume loss and were more likely to show clinically meaningful decline in short-term memory, compared with NT. In contrast, cross-sectional associations between increasing age and worsening short-term memory were identified in NT, but not autistic adults. Reduced fornix FA and long-term memory in ASD were found across the broad cross-sectional age range. These preliminary longitudinal findings suggest accelerated hippocampal volume loss in ASD and slightly higher rates of clinically-meaningful decline in verbal short-term memory. Contradictory cross-sectional and longitudinal results underscore the importance of longitudinal aging research in autistic adults. LAY SUMMARY: Autistic adults have increased risk of dementia, differences in brain memory structures, and difficulty with memory compared with neurotypical (NT) adults. However, there are no publications that follow the same middle-age autistic adults over time to see how their brain and memory change. Our preliminary findings in a small middle-age autism sample suggest a key memory brain structure, the hippocampus, may shrink faster over 2-3 years compared with NT, and short-term memory may become more challenging for some. Across a broad adult range, autistic adults also had reduced integrity of connections to the hippocampus and greater challenges with long-term memory. In our larger sample across a broad age range, the results did not hint at this aforementioned pattern of accelerated aging. This underscores the importance of more aging research in autism, and especially research where people are followed over time. En ligne : http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aur.2797 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=488

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