The AAP has plans to review its policy, though those efforts are still in the early stages.A 2015 review of research on Sensory Integration Therapy (SIT) concluded that SIT is "ineffective and that its theoretical underpinnings and assessment practices are unvalidated", that SIT techniques exist "outside the bounds of established evidence-based practice", and that SIT is "quite possibly a misuse of limited resources".Some sources point that sensory issues are an important concern, but not a diagnosis in themselves.Critics have noted that what proponents claim are symptoms of SPD are both broad and, in some cases, represent very common, and not necessarily abnormal or atypical, childhood characteristics. Where these traits become grounds for a diagnosis is generally in combination with other more specific symptoms or when the child gets old enough to explain that the reasons behind their behavior are specifically sensory. Manuals
SPD is in Stanley Greenspans Diagnostic Manual for Infancy and Early Childhood and as Regulation Disorders of Sensory Processing part of The Zero to Threes Diagnostic Classification. Is not recognized as a stand-alone diagnosis in the manuals ICD-10 or in the recently updated DSM-5, but unusual reactivity to sensory input or unusual interest in sensory aspects is included as a possible but not necessary criterion for the diagnosis of autism. History
Sensory processing disorder as a specific form of atypical functioning was first described by occupational therapist Anna Jean Ayres (1920–1989).
Sensory processing therapy
This therapy retains all of the above-mentioned four principles and adds:
Intensity (person attends therapy daily for a prolonged period of time)
Developmental approach (therapist adapts to the developmental age of the person, against actual age)
Test-retest systematic evaluation (all clients are evaluated before and after)
Process driven vs. activity driven (therapist focuses on the "just right" emotional connection and the process that reinforces the relationship)
Parent education (parent education sessions are scheduled into the therapy process)
"Joie de vivre" (happiness of life is therapys main goal, attained through social participation, self-regulation, and self-esteem)
Combination of best practice interventions (is often accompanied by integrated listening system therapy, floor time, and electronic media such as Xbox Kinect, Nintendo Wii, Makoto II machine training and others)While occupational therapists using a sensory integration frame of reference work on increasing a childs ability to adequately process sensory input, other OTs may focus on environmental accommodations that parents and school staff can use to enhance the childs function at home, school, and in the community. These may include selecting soft, tag-free clothing, avoiding fluorescent lighting, and providing ear plugs for "emergency" use (such as for fire drills). Evaluation of treatment effectiveness
A 2019 review found sensory integration therapy to be effective for autism spectrum disorder.