A Protocol for Sedation Free MRI and PET Imaging in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
A ready-made training package lets low-functioning autistic adults complete PET-MRI scans with no sedation.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team built a step-by-step training plan. The goal was to help low-functioning adults with autism lie still for a combined PET-MRI scan. No sedation was used.
Practice visits taught the clients to tolerate the tight scanner space and loud sounds. Staff used visuals, social stories, and short trials.
If a client passed the final mock scan, the real scan was booked the same day.
What they found
All trained adults finished the scan without sedation. The paper gives the full checklist so other sites can copy it.
How this fits with other research
Harada et al. (2011) did MRI in autistic adults first. They also skipped drugs, but only looked at brain chemistry, not training methods.
Nuraini et al. (2026) took the idea further. They used the same PET-ready setup to hunt dopamine problems in young autistic adults.
Together the three papers show a path: teach clients to stay calm, then collect high-quality brain data without sedation.
Why it matters
Many BCBAs serve adults who need medical scans. You can borrow the visual scripts and graded exposure steps to prep clients for any noisy procedure. Fewer drugs mean safer visits and clearer pictures for doctors.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Print the paper’s visual story and rehearse lying still for 5 min while playing YouTube MRI sounds.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Imaging technologies such as positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) present unparalleled opportunities to investigate the neural basis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, challenges such as deficits in social interaction, anxiety around new experiences, impaired language abilities, and hypersensitivity to sensory stimuli make participating in neuroimaging studies challenging for individuals with ASD. In this commentary, we describe the existent training protocols for preparing individuals with ASD for PET/MRI scans and our own experience developing a training protocol to facilitate the inclusion of low-functioning adults with ASD in PET-MRI studies. We hope to raise awareness of the need for more information exchange between research groups about lessons learned in this context in order to include the entire disease spectrum in neuroimaging studies.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2019 · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.02.002