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Non‐medical interventions for individuals with Rett syndrome: A systematic review
Author(s) -
Amoako Annika Nina,
Hare Dougal Julian
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.056
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1468-3148
pISSN - 1360-2322
DOI - 10.1111/jar.12694
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , rett syndrome , psycinfo , generalizability theory , psychology , medline , quality of life (healthcare) , clinical psychology , intervention (counseling) , medicine , applied psychology , physical medicine and rehabilitation , developmental psychology , psychotherapist , psychiatry , biochemistry , chemistry , political science , law , gene
Background Research into Rett syndrome has included various medical interventions. Non‐medical interventions are relatively under‐researched. Recent technological communication intervention advances have contributed to the evidence base in Rett syndrome. Method The Embase, PsycINFO and MEDLINE were systematically searched for peer‐reviewed papers describing non‐medical interventions for Rett syndrome. All identified papers were evaluated for methodological quality. Results Thirteen studies of adequate methodological quality were reviewed (across N = 60 participants). Interventions were primarily communication interventions including music, assistive technology, augmentative and alternative communication strategies, attentional training and cognitive rehabilitation training. All studies reported positive outcomes across communication, quality of life, brain stem activity, physical fitness and a reduction in stereotyped behaviour. However, methodological challenges to generalizability, standardization, lack of follow‐up and/or small‐N samples were common. Conclusions The review highlights the paucity of high‐quality research. Future research is needed to build on current research and improve validity and generalizability of interventions.