Children who showed signs of autism had reduced core autistic symptoms and more adaptive behavior compared with the control group after receiving the Early Start Denver Model, a nonmedical treatment for children ages 12 to 48 months, over a two-year period. The findings, reported on the website of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, also revealed continued improvement among the ESDM children even after the end of the treatment, said Sally Rogers, study author and creator of the model.