ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Autism
Efficacy of the Early Start Denver Model Combined With the TEACCH Program in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Provisionally accepted
- Hangzhou Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang, China
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Background: Early intervention plays a crucial role in improving outcomes for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) and the Treatment and Education of Autistic and Communication-Handicapped Children (TEACCH) program are commonly used approaches. This study aimed to evaluate whether combining ESDM with TEACCH provides greater clinical benefits than ESDM alone in young children with ASD. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted involving 264 children aged 24–60 months diagnosed with ASD. Participants were divided into two groups based on treatment period: the control group (n = 128) received ESDM-only therapy, while the observation group (n = 136) received ESDM combined with TEACCH over six months. Outcomes were assessed using the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) and the Psycho-Educational Profile, Third Edition (PEP-3). Baseline comparability was confirmed by the Chinese version of the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CCARS). Results: Both groups showed significant within-group improvement after intervention, but the combined observation group demonstrated greater gains. Post-treatment ATEC scores decreased from 84.56 ± 20.90 to 68.76 ± 17.96 versus 92.84 ± 18.20 to 84.91 ± 17.50 in controls (between-group difference = 16.32 ± 4.35; P < 0.001; Hedges’ g = 0.45). Cognitive scores on the PEP-3 improved by 11.31 points in the observation group compared to 8.15 in controls (P = 0.026). Reductions in maladaptive behaviors also favored the combined intervention (P = 0.036). Conclusions: The integrated ESDM and TEACCH intervention was more effective than ESDM alone in enhancing cognitive development and reducing symptom severity in young children with ASD.
Keywords: Autism Spectrum Disorder, Early Start Denver Model, TEACCH program, cognitivedevelopment, behavioral intervention
Received: 19 Jul 2025; Accepted: 30 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ma, Lv and Xiao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Ling-Ling Ma, linglingm123@hotmail.com
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