Autism, ADD/ADHD, PDD-NOD, Sensory Processing Disorders, and Chiropractic

Last night I attended a presentation by Dr. Charles Chapple called "The Structure and Function of Sensory Processing Disorders; From ADD to Autism." Dr. Chapple has published two papers in medical journals and is working on his third. One of the most important and interesting facts Dr. Chapple pointed out is the current medical diagnostic criteria for autistic spectrum disorders doesn't even include sensory problems. Most doctors would be familiar with the DSM-IV-TR which for Autism focuses mainly on delays in language, behavior, and social interaction. Dr. Chapple's talk pointed out the fact that by not even including the sensory piece most physicians are not even aware some of the root causes of the language, behavioral, and social issues can be traced to the central nervous system and missed milestones. The brain, brain stem, and central nervous system have not developed properly creating some of the symptoms. He outlined the normal nervous system development from the primitive instinctive brain to the fully developed reasoning brain. Showed how some of the behavours we see in our kids relate to an incomplete nervous system. All of the ASD kids I know have some kind of sensory issue. Somehow our ASD kids have gotten stuck. To me it is reasonable to assume assisting the complete development of the central nervous system can help alleviate some of ASD's effects. The other thing I really liked about Dr. Chapple's approach is that at no time did he sound like this is THE answer to Autism. He recognizes each child will need multiple therapy's and recovery will require an individual plan with multiple practitioners.