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Study identifies VR treatment response predictors in autism

Greater activation in brain regions associated with social abilities predicted better treatment response among young adults with autism receiving virtual reality therapy.

“We found that when participants showed more brain activation in certain regions within the social brain network, while viewing digitally represented biological motion — motion that symbolizes something a human might do, such as playing pat-a-cake — the intervention was more beneficial to the participants,” Y.J. Daniel Yang, PhD, of George Washington University and Children’s National Health System, Washington, D.C., said in a press release. “Whereas if these social brain network regions did not show much activation, we observed that the person may not benefit from the intervention at this particular time but, as the brain is constantly changing, could benefit in the future, for example, by increasing pretreatment activation in these regions.”

To identify pretreatment biomarkers that predict treatment response among young adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), researchers conducted a validated biological motion neuroimaging task among 17 young adults with high-functioning ASD who were receiving Virtual Reality-Social Cognition Training.

Predictors were determined by pretreatment brain activations to biological vs. scrambled motion in neural circuits that support language comprehension and interpretation of incongruent auditory emotions and prosody, and processing socioemotional experience and interpersonal affective information, and emotional regulation.

Regression-based multivariate pattern analyses with cross validation supported predictive value of these findings, according to researchers.

“This study advances us one step closer toward the goal of targeted, personalized treatment for individuals with autism,” Yang said in the release. “We are very happy that this predictive method may be potentially able to help children, as well as adults on the spectrum, know which training might be worth their time and money based on their current brain function.” – by Amanda Oldt

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.