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Communication on Sexuality Between Parents and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

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Abstract

The objective of this systematic review was to identify and analyze the information available on sexual communication between parents and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Medline/PubMed, Lilacs, Ebsco, Embase, Scielo, Google Scholar, Scirus and Redalyc databases were used to find articles. The inclusion criteria were studies published in indexed databases in English, Spanish and Portuguese with a quantitative and qualitative approach in full text, studies that include a population of parents of adolescents with ASD and adolescents between 10 and 19 years of age with a diagnosis of ASD, and studies that covered communication about sexuality. Keywords combined with Boolean operators were used. Three topics were identified that covered the communication of parents and adolescents with ASD: sexual issues, parents' romantic expectations, and sexual experiences. This systematic review highlights the need for training of health professionals and sex education programs for parents of adolescents with ASD.

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Funding

Funding was provided by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (Grant No. 0). National postgraduate scholarship ID: 732394 (Conacyt-PNPC: 005560) awarded to Tatiane Geralda André.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Facultad de Enfermería Mochis, Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa, Los Mochis, Ahome, Mexico

    Tatiane Geralda André, Carolina Valdez-Montero, Jesica Guadalupe Ahumada-Cortez & Mario Enrique Gámez-Medina

  2. Facultad de Enfermería, Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ciencias de La Salud (CIDICS), Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Monterrey, Mexico

    María Aracely Márquez-Vega

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  1. Tatiane Geralda André
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  2. Carolina Valdez-Montero
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  3. María Aracely Márquez-Vega
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  5. Mario Enrique Gámez-Medina
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Correspondence to Carolina Valdez-Montero.

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André, T.G., Valdez-Montero, C., Márquez-Vega, M.A. et al. Communication on Sexuality Between Parents and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review. Sex Disabil 38, 217–229 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-020-09628-1

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