Sensory Integration Education

Gina Evans, SensorNet Editor, provides a snapshot of Day 3 of The International Sensory Integration Congress (ISIC) 2024 on behalf of Sensory Integration Education.

ISIC 2024 Day 3, Wednesday 30th October, explored the latest research, innovations, and evidence within the field from leading researchers and luminaries in the field. This was the final day of the congress, which offered an extensive selection of plenary sessions, research findings and updates from practice. The hybrid format of the congress allows for both an in-person and virtual experience for the attendees, which expands the opportunity to network locally and globally. This is the first ASI event of this kind to run in Australia. We have summarised a brief flavour of some of the topics featured on the agenda of the final day. 

The keynote session from today was presented by Diane Parham on Play as Therapy for Adults, and we know there will be many readers interested in this topic. Will keep you updated on a briefing from this keynote once it is available for us to catch up on virtually. 

Today’s programme included a presentation by Ewelina Bagińska from Poland on Sensory Integrative Dysfunction in Children with Food Selectivity. This research study is part of her PhD dissertation at Pomeranian Medical University in Poland. Ewelina is also the owner of a small therapeutic space called FEBIS. 

There is solid scientific evidence to support the implementation of ASI for improving food acceptance, however there is a lack of evidence on how effective these strategies are for children with Sensory Integration Disorder without neurodevelopmental disorders. Little is known about whether parents use a sensory approach at home to improve food acceptance and what the effectiveness of these actions are. The aim of this study was to assess the existence of a relationship between sensory integration dysfunction and food selectivity in children aged 3-6 years. The hypothesis is that children with food selectivity will demonstrate sensory integration dysfunction. Thirty-four children from Poland participated in the study with food selectivity in the parent’s opinion. They were all evaluated using the EASI and the Child Eating behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ).

Findings: There is a greater role of sensory modulation in the eating process more than sensory perception, which leads to activation of the limbic system including the amygdala. There is an influence of gravitational insecurity on food selectivity, combined with fear of trying new things. Future research should focus on sensory modulation not sensory perception, explore the effectiveness of SI therapy in children without neurodiversity and explore the effectiveness of home recommendations. This study adds to the growing literature showing children with food selectivity have sensory integration dysfunction, especially sensory reactivity, poor tactile perception and gravitational insecurity. Up to now studies have not reported poor vestibular modulation or occurrence of gravitational insecurity in relation to food selectivity. 

If you wish to find out more about this work please email: [email protected]

Tomas Morgenthaler (PhD candidate) presented on Transforming practice: From using play to enabling play via environmental evaluation. This scoping review investigated the relationship between environmental characteristics of outdoor play spaces and children’s outdoor play and created the Environmental Taxonomy of Outdoor Play Space Features (ETOPF). A qualitative content analysis of 45 articles was conducted and used to form an environmental taxonomy. This taxonomy consists of 14 different environmental categories which include; open spaces, designated sports areas, paths and walkways, play equipment and themed and suggested play features amongst others. The authors were able to identify over 284 distinct play affordances in the research papers. Suggested uses of the Taxonomy include: for terminology and active communication in an interdisciplinary field; for justification for environmental modification and to shift to a child perspective of evaluation. Future work with the taxonomy will include development of evidence-informed and space-oriented approaches for socio-spatial inclusion in play provision and practice. This new knowledge will assist in evaluating the potential play affordance in outdoor play spaces for both research and practical applications.

Check out the research paper here for more information; 

Morgenthaler, T., Lynch, H., Loebach, J., Pentland, D., & Schulze, C. (2024). Using the Theory of Affordances to Understand Environment–Play Transactions: Environmental Taxonomy of Outdoor Play Space Features—A Scoping Review. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 78(4), 7804185120. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2024.050606

Contact Thomsas Morgenthaler at: [email protected]

A practice-based presentation compiled by Karin Weinmann (Pretoria Cochlear Implant Unit), Brenda Schmid (Whispers Speech and Hearing Centre) and Stefanie Kruger (Pretoria Cochlear Implant Unit) looked at Overcoming barriers and celebrating victories: A case study on a child with Waardenburg syndrome and cochlear implants. This case study involved a little girl aged 6 based in South Africa with diagnosis of Waardenburg syndrome and permanent sensori-neural hearing loss. She had bilateral cochlear implants fitted. They spoke about the OT assessment process which involved use of the tools SPM-2 and the EASI. Some of her participation challenges included an unsteady and wide gait, frequent falls, no protective reflexes, difficulties sitting on a chair and a wide range of educational challenges. Videos from ASI intervention in the clinic were shown which brought the case study to life. 

The case study concluded that over a period of 3 years, OT-ASI promoted better sensory perception and organisation of sensory input for the child, which resulted in improved balance and motor skill, as well as language and confidence. 

It was another full and rich day at ISIC. The closing ceremony marked the end of another international SI congress. We will continue to bring you brief snippets as we make our way through the content that this year had to offer and keep you, our readers, updated on new developments within the field.