Analysis of clinical and psychological characteristics of 225 children with autism spectrum disorder based on the C-PEP-3 scale.

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders that affect children's social interaction and communication skills and exert a serious effect on children's perception, language, emotion, and especially social interaction development.

Aim: To determine the clinical and psychological characteristics of children with ASD according to the C-PEP-3.

Methods: This retrospective study included 225 children with autism aged 2-7 years who were treated in our hospital from 2021 to 2024. The C-PEP-3 scale was used for assessment, and the evaluation results were analyzed.

Results: The comparison of children with ASD in the age groups of < 3.5 years and > 3.5 years revealed significant differences in the scores of imitation, fine motor, gross motor, hand-eye coordination, cognitive performance, and verbal cognition development areas (P: Pass) (P < 0.01). However, no significant differences in the scores of perception, emotion, interpersonal relationships, play, sensation, and language (S: Severe) were observed on pathological scales (P > 0.05). The difference in age in the gross motor developmental delay of the scale was the smallest, whereas that of the verbal cognition was the largest, followed by the imitation functional area. An inverse correlation was found between the scores of imitation, perception, hand-eye coordination, and cognitive performance (P) developmental function areas in children with ASD and those of emotion, interpersonal relationships, game and item preferences, sensory patterns, and emotion (S) in the pathological scale (P < 0.05). Fine and gross motor skills were negatively correlated with interpersonal relationships, game and item preferences, and emotions in the pathological scale (P < 0.05). Age was significantly positively correlated with the scores of imitation, perception, fine motor, gross motor, hand-eye coordination, cognitive performance, and verbal cognition developmental function areas (P) (P < 0.05). Further, age was not associated with emotions, interpersonal relationships, game and item preferences, sensory patterns, and emotions (P > 0.05). No gender difference was observed between the scores of each developmental area (P) of the scale and the scores of each functional area (S) of the pathological scale.

Conclusion: The C-PEP-3 scale reflects the differences in clinical characteristics of children with autism, and the pathological scale is associated with the severity of developmental function areas. The C-PEP-3 scale can be utilized to assess the effect of age changes on children with autism. Attention in rehabilitation should be focused on addressing the pathological behaviors of children with autism.