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No Proprioceptive Deficits in Autism Despite Movement-Related Sensory and Execution Impairments

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Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often involves sensory and motor problems, yet the proprioceptive sense of limb position has not been directly assessed. We used three tasks to assess proprioception in adolescents with ASD who had motor and sensory perceptual abnormalities, and compared them to age- and IQ-matched controls. Results showed no group differences in proprioceptive accuracy or precision during active or passive tasks. Both groups showed (a) biases in elbow angle accuracy that varied with joint position, (b) improved elbow angle precision for active versus passive tasks, and (c) improved precision for a fingertip versus elbow angle estimation task. Thus, a primary proprioceptive deficit may not contribute to sensorimotor deficits in ASD. Abnormalities may arise at later sensory processing stages.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank all participants in this research study, as well as Jessica O’Brien, Lindsay Koenig, and particularly Lauren Dowell for assistance with subject recruitment and data collection. We would also like to thank the Interactive Autism Network. This research was supported by an Autism Speaks Pre-Doctoral Fellowship (AJB and CTF), NIH Grant R01 NS048527 (SHM), and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, an NIH/NCRR CTSA Program, UL1 RR025005 (SHM).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Christina T. Fuentes & Amy J. Bastian

  2. Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Stewart H. Mostofsky & Amy J. Bastian

  3. Kennedy Krieger Institute, 707 N Broadway—G05, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA

    Christina T. Fuentes, Stewart H. Mostofsky & Amy J. Bastian

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  1. Christina T. Fuentes
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  2. Stewart H. Mostofsky
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  3. Amy J. Bastian
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Correspondence to Amy J. Bastian.

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Fuentes, C.T., Mostofsky, S.H. & Bastian, A.J. No Proprioceptive Deficits in Autism Despite Movement-Related Sensory and Execution Impairments. J Autism Dev Disord 41, 1352–1361 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-010-1161-1

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