Experimental video training for parents with autistic children should be extended across the NHS after results from a trial showed that it had record success in reducing the effects of the disorder, scientists said.
British researchers have for the first time identified early, parent-led therapy in the home as a potential treatment for the developmental disorder, which affects a tenth of all children.
They found that the proportion of children who displayed severe symptoms was 17 per cent lower six years after engaging in planned talking sessions and play with their parents between the ages of two and four.
The study of 152 children, published in The Lancet, found that the number of children with severe autism fell from 55 per cent at the start