Background: People with intellectual disabilities are more likely to experience sleep problems, which can affect quality of life, physical health, mental health and well-being. Methods: An integrative literature review was conducted to investigate what is known about behavioural sleep disturbances in people with an intellectual disability. The…

Background: Interventions for challenging behaviours in individuals with intellectual disabilities benefit from outcome monitoring that takes clients' preferences into account. We determined clients' and representatives' preferred outcome domains and measures to secure their involvement in treatment decisions for challenging behaviours. Method: We…

Background: Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability evidence significant anxiety. This study aimed to adapt a group cognitive behaviour therapies (CBT) programme designed for youth with ASD and anxiety to meet the cognitive, communication, and behavioural needs of adolescents with intellectual disability, and…

Background: Dog-assisted therapy (DAT) is hypothesized to help children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and Down syndrome (DS). Methods: The present authors compared synchronous movement patterns of these children (n = 10) and their therapy dogs during the first and last session of a DAT programme, and their post-therapy changes in emotional…

Background: Antipsychotic medications are used among 19%--58% of adults with intellectual disabilities to manage challenging behaviour against the NICE guideline recommendations. Studies show that it is possible to completely withdraw antipsychotics in about one third of adults with intellectual disabilities and a dose reduction of 50% or more in…

Background: Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is being increasingly adapted for use with people who have an intellectual disability. However, it remains unclear whether inherent cognitive deficits that are present in adults who have an intellectual disability preclude the use of cognitive-based therapies. This review aims to systematically…

Background: Challenging behaviour is a common problem among people with ID and in services for people with ID. This paper aims to provide an overview of the views and preferences of people with ID on challenging behaviour. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirteen adults with mild to moderate ID and seven proxies (family or…

Background: Needle phobias are common in children and adults worldwide. One effective intervention for this phobia is exposure therapy where a participant is gradually exposed to increasing levels of the fear-evoking stimulus while differential reinforcement is applied. This intervention, however, may be difficult to implement with some medical…

Background: People with intellectual disabilities (ID) should be able to access the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme, currently a main provider of mainstream mental health services in England. IAPT offer cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) to individuals experiencing mental health problems, although its effectiveness…

Background: Despite strong evidence for cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) in treating mental health, its use, thus far, has been limited for people with intellectual disabilities. This study describes a CBT-based guided self-help (CBT-GSH) manual for individuals with intellectual disability, and focus groups explore the views of clinicians,…

Background: There have been a number of studies of treatment for men with intellectual disabilities and sexually abusive behaviour but few follow-up studies. Our aim was to follow up men with intellectual disabilities who had attended group cognitive behavioural treatment (CBT) for sexually abusive behaviour. Method Thirty-four men (from seven…

Background: People with an intellectual disability whose behaviours are perceived to be of serious harm to themselves or others are at risk of being subjected to restrictive interventions. Prevalence rates are difficult to determine, as most research is unable to draw on the results of population-level data. Method: The current study reports on…

Background: There is much interest in the use and prevention of unnecessary restrictive behavioural procedures; however, accurate estimates of their use are lacking. The Healthcare Commission and Commission for Social Care Inspection (2007) recently reported such data from a large sample of units administered by the National Health Service (NHS).…

Background: For non-disabled men, group cognitive-behaviour therapy is a successful form of treatment when men have committed sexual offences. However, men with intellectual disabilities and sexually abusive behaviour are rarely offered treatment for their sexual behaviour and little research data on the effectiveness of such treatment has been…

Background: Dental disease is more common among people with intellectual disabilities than in the general population. Improvements in oral health require individuals to engage in daily oral hygiene and regular visits to a dental practitioner; both may be challenging for the individual with intellectual impairment. Materials and Methods: A review…