Leah R Ketcheson

• Wayne State University

Purpose While it is common practice for schools across the United States to include neurodivergent children in physical education classes, many programs outside of school—such as those at home or in the community—are not effectively tailored to meet their support needs. This gap contributes to lower levels of physical activity among neurodivergent...

Autistic children, as well as their primary caregivers (e.g., parents), experience greater health disparities when compared with the general population. Despite this reality, there has been relatively little priority placed on promoting positive trajectories of health in either of these underserved populations. The primary purpose of this study was...

Background Special Olympics is a sport organisation spearheading efforts to increase physical activity accessibility through inclusive sport. The Unified Sports® initiative brings together Special Olympics athletes (with intellectual disabilities) and Unified partners (without a disability) in sport training and competition on the same team. The st...

Background: As the prevalence of autism appears to increase, more research to guide effective diagnosis and intervention practices is needed. Findings disseminated through peer-reviewed publications are critical, but the number of retractions continues to rise. An understanding of retracted publications is imperative to ensure the body of evidence...

Background Parenting a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder can be stressful and result in health consequences for the caregivers, a population that is often overlooked and underserved. While mind-body interventions such as mindfulness yoga can help promote positive health outcomes, limited research has explored the impact of such a program on careg...

While there is wide consensus regarding the importance of early intervention, health is rarely considered within priorities. Twenty-five children on the autism spectrum (Mage = 4.67, SD = 0.82) participated in a 12-week physical activity intervention. Primary objective was to examine impact of a physical activity intervention on physical activity,...

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), characterized by core deficits in social communication and restrictive behaviors, can exhibit concurrent motor incoordination and/or intellectual disability (ID). While pervasive delays in motor behavior are common, formal diagnosis of Development Coordination Disorder (DCD) is uncommon. It is not clear...

Background Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is now the highest among the developmental disabilities in the United States, with recent statistics estimates of 1 in every 54 children. While growing attention on the early intervention services is warranted, what is not well understood is the relationship between the core deficits of ASD and the early fu...

Purpose: There is a relationship between motor and language skills in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but little work addresses the ramifications of this relationship for professionals who teach motor skills to this population. Within a motor skills intervention, this study probed the importance of language skills for motor interventi...

Background: Quality of life (QOL) is a subjective appraisal of life conditions. Disabilities often decrease QOL for individuals, due to potential physical, cognitive, and social limitations. Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) have delayed fundamental motor skills (FMS) and less physical activity compared to neurotypical...

Background Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often experience increased barriers to engaging in physical activity (PA) which can stem from lack of gross motor function (GMF) development. Intervening on GMF at an early age can create better opportunities for children with IDD to engage in regular PA. In turn, increased...

Background: Quality of life (QOL) is a subjective appraisal of life conditions. Disabilities often decrease QOL for individuals, due to potential physical, cognitive, and social limitations. Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) have delayed fundamental motor skills (FMS) and less physical activity compared to neurotypical...

In the current chapter, we introduce and describe several motivational theories followed by a review of the research done with them in adapted physical education (APE). Because few APE researchers have used the motivational theories we discuss, our review of the literature is brief. Given the lack of research using these theories we spend more time...

Autism spectrum disorder is the fastest growing developmental disability in the United States. As such, there is an unprecedented need for research examining factors contributing to the health disparities in this population. This research suggests a relationship between the levels of physical activity and health outcomes. In fact, excessive sedenta...

This poster is a presentation of the methodology and behavioral framework of our now in progress study. The study assesses effectiveness of improving quality of life through a gross motor function intervention for children with developmental disabilities.

Purpose: Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) are at greater risk for obesity than their peers who are developing typically. One factor contributing to an early onset of obesity is low levels of physical activity (PA). However, there is little known regarding PA patterns during infancy. Methods: The purpose of this study was to examine the daily...

Despite evidence suggesting one of the earliest indicators of an eventual autism spectrum disorder diagnoses is an early motor delay, there remain very few interventions targeting motor behavior as the primary outcome for young children with autism spectrum disorder. The aim of this pilot study was to measure the efficacy of an intensive motor skil...

Background: Research measuring physical activity behaviors during infancy is critical for evaluation of early intervention efforts to reduce rapid weight gain. There is little known about the physical activity patterns of infants, due in part to limited evidence for measurement procedures. This study sought to determine the minimal number of days...

Early difficulties with motor skills are a common indicator of autism. Overcoming these can improve both the health and the social opportunities of those affected. Sean Ahlquist, Leah Ketcheson and Costanza Colombi – respectively academic specialists in architecture, kinesiology and psychiatry – here describe their cross-departmental collaboration...

Background Objective physical activity (PA) monitoring via accelerometry is both costly and time consuming. Furthermore, overall adherence to a monitoring protocol is often complicated by disability. Therefore, it is essential that strategies for supporting accelerometer wear for youth with disabilities are maximized. The purpose of this perspectiv...

Bicycle riding is a functional motor skill that increases physical activity opportunities, social interaction, and independence. However, bicycle riding is difficult for youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to learn. This study examined the effectiveness of home-support consultation (HSC) on increasing the maintenance of independent bicycle ri...

ABSTRACT Background: Anxiety and depression are recognised co-morbidities associated with COPD and have been related to poor health outcomes. Therapies to relieve anxiety and depression are currently not detailed in clinical guidelines. Methods: A systematic review of psychological interventions for anxiety and depression in adults with COPD was co...

The research to date examining the motor skills in middle school and high school aged children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) suggests that significant motor delays are evident when comparisons are made to typically developing peers or normative data. Furthermore, the physical activity (PA) levels in adolescents with ASD have been shown to dec...

Background: With the rise in sedentary behavior in youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as they age (MacDonald, Esposito, & Ulrich, In press; Pan & Frey, 2006; Sandt, 2005), it is becoming increasingly important to provide opportunities to increase physical activity. Until recently few physical activity intervention studies have been conducted...