The Healthcare Experience of Autistic Patients in Orthopaedic Surgery and Closely Related Fields: A Scoping Review

• Published in: Children (Basel) Vol. 10; no. 5; p. 906
• Main Authors: Criss, Steven D, Kakulamarri, Shravya, Xu, Raylin F, Fajardo, Maya, Keeney, Tamra, Tolchin, Dorothy W, May, Collin J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 22.05.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Analysis; Autism; autism spectrum conditions; autism spectrum disorder; Autistic children; Bupivacaine; Caregivers; Communication; Emergency medical care; Exercise; Gorillas; Intervention; Literature reviews; Medical research; Medicine, Experimental; Music; Occupational therapy; Online databases; orthopaedic surgery; Orthopedic surgery; Orthopedics; Participation; Patients; Pediatrics; Physical fitness; physical medicine and rehabilitation; Physical therapy; Review; Social interaction; Surgery; Systematic review; Therapeutics, Physiological; Massachusetts; orthopaedic surgery; patient experience; quality improvement; physical medicine and rehabilitation; autism spectrum conditions; physical therapy; autism spectrum disorder; occupational therapy
• ISSN: 2227-9067; 2227-9067
• DOI: 10.3390/children10050906

Orthopaedic and related care has the potential to present unique obstacles for patients with a range of autism manifestations. In this review, we aim to describe and analyze the literature on autistic patients' experience within orthopaedics and closely related fields. This literature search utilized the PubMed, Embase, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature databases. Three major concepts were built into the search terms: (1) patients on the autism spectrum; (2) patient experience; and (3) movement sciences, including orthopaedics, physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R), occupational therapy (OT), and physical therapy (PT). Our search yielded 35 topical publications, with the major topic areas addressed as follows: (1) clinical and perioperative management, (2) therapy interventions, (3) participation in exercise and social play, (4) sensory management and accommodations, (5) caregiver/parent training and involvement in care, (6) healthcare needs and barriers to care, and (7) utilization of technology. In the current literature, there are no studies that attempt to directly assess autistic patient experience with care practices and clinical environments in orthopaedics. Rigorous, direct examination of the experience of autistic patients within clinical orthopaedic settings is urgently needed to address this gap.