Sensory Features as a Marker of Autism Spectrum Disorders

We explored sensory features as distinguishing characteristics of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Four groups of males (n = 36): Six with 47, XYY syndrome and ASD (XYY+ASD), six with 47, XYY syndrome and no ASD (XYY-ASD), 12 with idiopathic ASD (ASD-I) and 12 typically developing (TYP). The short sensory profile (SSP) the sensory challenge protocol (SCP) were used to assess sensory features. SSP Total Score for the YY+ASD was significantly lower than the XYY-ASD (p = .002) and TYP (p < .001), but were not different from ASD-I (p = .714). The XYY+ASD group had significantly lower baseline heart rate variability during the SCP than TYP (p = .044). Findings provide preliminary support of sensory features as important in ASD diagnosis.