Lessons learned: a pilot study on occupational therapy effectiveness for children with sensory modulation disorder.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this pilot study was to prepare for a randomized controlled study of the effectiveness of occupational therapy using a sensory integration approach (OT-SI) with children who have sensory processing disorders (SPD).


METHODS
A one-group pretest, posttest design with 30 children was completed with a subset of children with SPD, those with sensory modulation disorder.


RESULTS
Lessons learned relate to (a) identifying a homogeneous sample with quantifiable inclusion criteria, (b) developing an intervention manual for study replication and a fidelity to treatment measure, (c) determining which outcomes are sensitive to change and relate to parents' priorities, and (d) clarifying rigorous methodologies (e.g., blinded examiners, randomization, power).


CONCLUSIONS
A comprehensive program of research is needed, including multiple pilot studies to develop enough knowledge that high-quality effectiveness research in occupational therapy can be completed. Previous effectiveness studies in OT-SI have been single projects not based on a unified long-term program of research.
Miller
Lucy Jane
LJ
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Colorado, Denver, USA. miller@KIDfoundation.org
Schoen
Sarah A
SA
James
Katherine
K
Schaaf
Roseann C
RC
D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003120:Colorado; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D009788:Occupational Therapy; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012678:Sensation Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome