Postural Control Deficits in Autism Spectrum Disorder: The Role of Sensory Integration.

The team asked adults with autism to stand still on a force plate. They blurred vision or tilted the floor to make balance cues unreliable.

They compared sway size to neurotypical adults. More sway means poorer sensory integration.

Adults with ASD wobbled more when cues were off. The extra sway shows their brain weighs unreliable inputs differently.

The deficit appeared across vision and body-sense conditions, not just one.

Lim et al. (2017) pooled 19 studies and saw the same pattern: large balance deficits in ASD under every sensory test. Doumas et al. (2016) is one data point inside that bigger picture.

LeBlanc et al. (2003) found the same sway increase in children thirteen years earlier. Together the papers show the problem starts young and persists into adulthood.

Ghanouni et al. (2017) extends the idea: faces, not objects, destabilize kids with ASD. Sensory reliability matters, but social content can tip the balance further.

When you ask clients with ASD to stand for a task, check the sensory load. Dim lights, moving surfaces, or face-to-face demands can all magnify sway. Build in hand rails, seated options, or brief stance times. Note balance issues in your FBA and add gross-motor goals if needed.