Integrative Therapy Interventions for Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Narrative Review

Various interventions have been used to manage symptoms in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), including approaches to integrative therapy (IT). ASD individuals can present with several degrees of severity. Consequently, support requirements affecting communication, motor development, social interaction, and behavior are necessary. IT offers a flexible, person-centered framework that integrates various clinical interventions, such as cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness-based therapies, exercise, herbal medicines, art therapy, and acupuncture. IT aims to treat the person by considering the mind, body, and spirit. The current narrative review synthesizes findings reported in recent systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses found in PubMed that examined IT interventions for ASD individuals, with particular emphasis on cognitive-behavioral therapy, mindfulness-based interventions, acupuncture, herbal medicines, exercise, and art therapy. Collectively, these approaches demonstrate various potential benefits related to anxiety, parental stress, social responsiveness, physical and motor development, behavior, language ability, and comorbidities. Nevertheless, the current evidence base remains constrained by methodological heterogeneity, inconsistent sample sizes of the participants, and potential bias in the studies. These limitations warrant attention in the interpretation of the results and highlight the need for more rigorous, standardized research in this field. High-quality, adequately powered randomized clinical trials are required before the widespread application of IT interventions for the management of ASD individuals.