The Relationship Between Sensory Profile and Ankle Muscle Shortness in Children With Autism

This test is used to assess how children aged 3-10 years process information from their body and environment. It is a five-point Likert-type parent questionnaire and consists of 125 items. It is explained to the caregiver that he/she should check the box that best describes how often the child performs the behaviors given in the questionnaire and answer for all parameters; if he/she cannot answer because there is a behavior that he/she cannot observe at all or that he/she thinks does not fit the child, he/she should put an X on that question.

The end of each section is scored according "always" 1, "frequently" 2, "occasionally" 3, "rarely" 4, "never" 5. The scores obtained from each parameter are calculated according to the Dunn Sensory Profile Score Explanation and the child is classified according to the categories of 'definite difference', 'probable difference', 'typical performance' from each section.

It is a scale consisting of 15 items used to assess the severity of autism, with each item scored between 1 and 4. A score of 1 represents that the child's behavior for that item is normal for his/her age, while a score of 4 represents that it is extremely abnormal. The minimum score is 15 and the maximum score is 60. The results are evaluated as "no autism" between 15-29 points, "mild-moderate autism" between 30-36 points, and extreme autism between 37-60 points. Families of the children were asked to fill out the froms.

Passive foot dorsiflexion measurement with a manual goniometer was performed at 0 degrees knee flexion for Gastrocnemius muscle and 90 degrees knee flexion for Soleus muscle. Muscle shortness was expressed in degrees. Ankle neutral position was recorded as 0 degrees, dorsiflexion angles as positive and plantar flexion angles as negative.

Tiptoe walking was assessed and classified by observation during 10-meter walk-run. Level 1 indicates that there is tiptoe behavior during running, walking and standing; Level 2 indicates that there is tiptoe behavior during running and walking; Level 3 indicates that there is tiptoe behavior only during running; if no tiptoe walking is observed, it was indicated as "no tiptoe walking".