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Parent implemented treatment for repetitive behaviors in children with ASD: Using a novel telehealth approach to increase service access

Award Number: R01HD105036
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHILD HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 04/10/2021
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 03/31/2026

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Parent implemented treatment for repetitive behaviors in children with ASD: Using a novel telehealth approach to increase service access - PROJECT SUMMARY Families are facing significant challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially those caring for a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A recent SPARK survey1 (N = 8,000) found that approximately 95% of parents reported increases in their child’s challenging behaviors as a result of COVID-19, and the restricted, repetitive behaviors and interests (RRBI) of children likely fall within this category. Since only 35% of parents who took the SPARK survey indicated their child is receiving therapy services remotely, the COVID-19 pandemic will likely exacerbate this core symptom of ASD. RRBIs are often the target for clinical treatment, as they can significantly interfere with learning, and are associated with long-term functional impairment, and psychiatric comorbidities (e.g., anxiety). Given children with ASD are currently out of routine and experiencing a severe reduction in therapeutic and educational services, the RRBIs and comorbidities of children are likely magnified at this time. Yet, there are no effective therapies to treat the full range of repetitive, inflexible behaviors found in ASD, and there have been no large-scale studies of behavioral interventions specifically developed to target this core symptom domain. This has resulted in a significant treatment gap between the number of effective behavioral therapies used to target atypical social-communication behaviors in autism when compared to those designed to treat repetitive behaviors. Thus, our team developed and pilot-tested the Family-Implemented Treatment for Behavioral Inflexibility (FITBI), derived from neurobehavioral models of reward and learning. The overall goal of FITBI is to teach parents how to identify high probability cues in the environment that can elicit RRBI symptoms and teach their child to inhibit repetitive behaviors and instead replace them with flexible and more functional behaviors. Since our initial pilot studies, the need for technology-based interventions has certainly increased. While the effectiveness of telehealth interventions for children with ASD is emerging, early research suggests interventions delivered via telehealth for children with ASD may be just as effective as in-person interventions. Yet, we currently have no understanding of the effectiveness of RRBI interventions delivered remotely. Therefore, the overall goal of this project is to conduct a parallel group randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing remote delivery of FITBI (12-week intervention + 3 booster sessions over 6 months) to remote delivery of a parent education only (PE) control condition in a final sample size of 100 (3-9 years) children with ASD and high rates of ritualistic repetitive behaviors. We will use TORSH, a comprehensive secure online platform that enhances therapist-parent coaching via telehealth. Further, an important objective of this proposal is to examine child and parent factors associated with treatment response and uptake in order to advance translational research and knowledge on personalized intervention approaches.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $463,683 )
2025	2025	UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CENTER FOR RESEARCH INC	2385 IRVING HILL RD	LAWRENCE	KS	66045	DOUGLAS	USA	Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research	000	5	4/10/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$463,683
														Subtotal = $463,683

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $473,017 )
2024	2024	UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CENTER FOR RESEARCH INC	2385 IRVING HILL RD	LAWRENCE	KS	66045	DOUGLAS	USA	Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research	000	4	4/9/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$430,015
2024	2024	UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CENTER FOR RESEARCH INC	2385 IRVING HILL RD	LAWRENCE	KS	66045	DOUGLAS	USA	Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research	001	4	5/6/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$43,002
														Subtotal = $473,017

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $495,087 )
2023	2023	UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CENTER FOR RESEARCH, INC.	2385 IRVING HILL RD	LAWRENCE	KS	66045	DOUGLAS	USA	Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research	000	3	3/30/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$495,087
														Subtotal = $495,087

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $513,982 )
2022	2022	UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CENTER FOR RESEARCH, INC.	2385 IRVING HILL RD	LAWRENCE	KS	66045	DOUGLAS	USA	Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research	000	2	4/18/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$513,982
														Subtotal = $513,982

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $526,725 )
2021	2021	UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CENTER FOR RESEARCH, INC.	2385 IRVING HILL RD	LAWRENCE	KS	66045	DOUGLAS	USA	Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research	000	1	4/8/2021	NEW	$526,725
														Subtotal = $526,725

Grand Total All Awards = $2,472,494

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Parent implemented treatment for repetitive behaviors in children with ASD: Using a novel telehealth approach to increase service access

Award Number: R01HD105036

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHILD HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 04/10/2021

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 03/31/2026

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