Neurokid; Autism comprehensive application

People with autism see, hear and feel the world in a different way than others, because autism affects their understanding and interaction with the world around them. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a type of neurodevelopmental disorder that may appear in the first three years of a person’s life and is lifelong. The symptoms of this disease include defects in interaction and establishing social relationships, difficulty in processing perception and repetitive behaviors.

Therefore, parents with children with autism go through many challenges in the process of growing and raising their children. In this interview, Ecomotive introduces the application Neurokid He works comprehensively in the field of autism. According to the founder of this application, NeuroKid entered the world of autism with the aim of early diagnosis of autism and helping their parents. Follow Ecomotive’s conversation with the founder of this collection:

please introduce yourself:

I am Zahra Soltanifar, a graduate of medical engineering from the University of Science and Technology. I am currently studying for a master’s degree in psychology. I also work as the founder of Neurokid application in the field of autism. The start of my work in the field of autism started in 1994, which included activities such as voluntary membership in a non-governmental organization, taking numerous scientific and practical courses, and defining the project of my master’s course in the field of autism.

All these things made me determined to take bigger steps in this field from the very beginning. In 2018, after entering the startup ecosystem together with a number of experts in this field who are also the founders of the application, we decided to start under the supervision of experts in the cognitive field and with the support of Cognotech cognitive accelerator Let’s launch an application in the field of autism so that it can solve part of the needs of this field in the online space.

What members does the Norkid team consist of?

The key members of the Neurokid team are Dr. Mohammad Reza Shalbafan, a psychiatrist, a member of the faculty of Iran University of Medical Sciences and head of the Brain and Cognition Clinic, Pouria Akbari, a master’s graduate in cognitive rehabilitation from Shahid Beheshti University, and Seyed Mohammad, a cognitive rehabilitation therapist at the Brain and Cognition Clinic. Ali Miri graduated with a master’s degree Psychology and the education of exceptional children from the University of Tehran and the research expert of the Iran Autism Association and Sina Tavakoli, who has completed her master’s degree in rehabilitation management from the Iran University of Medical Sciences, the management of the brain and cognitive clinic and the management of the association’s education, research and rehabilitation department Autism is in charge of Iran.

Autism With what symptoms does it occur among children?

The main indicators of autism disorder can be examined in two cases:

• Impairment in communication and social interaction
• Occurrence of stereotyped behaviors, interests, repetitive and limited activities

These two indicators can cause these symptoms in people with autism spectrum disorder:

• Unreasonable laughter, not reacting to your name
• Unusual interests in certain objects
• Failure to follow social etiquette
• Intense crying, stress and confusion for no apparent reason
• Unusual behaviors such as jumping and waving hands
• Avoid touching and hugging
• A desire for sameness in daily habits and unwillingness to change
• Not participating in group games and not playing with other children
• Avoid eye contact
• Repetition of words or phrases
• Lack of understanding of fear and dangerous situations
• Lack of dramatic games or unusual and repetitive dramatic games

What are the causes of autism?

Autism does not have a single cause, and its definitive cause has not been determined to date. Researchers believe that several genes and a combination of environmental factors may be involved in the development of autism. Some studies on autistic people have shown abnormalities in several brain areas such as the frontal lobe, cerebellum, amygdala, hippocampus, etc. These results are significant and important and need further study.

What is autism spectrum disorder?

Autism spectrum disorder is one of the types of neurodevelopmental disorders with psychological symptoms that affect the normal development of the brain, brain information processing and its performance in the areas of social interactions, communication and cognitive skills, therefore, children with Autism disorder see, hear and feel the world differently than other children.

Regarding the diagnosis and control of the autism spectrum, say:

The issue of diagnosing autism is quite complicated and specialized, because the final diagnosis is made only by specialists such as psychiatrists, child neurologists, according to the clinical interview of the parents and the observation of the child’s behavior in order to complete the screening and diagnostic checklists. Therefore, the warning signs of autism spectrum children can be seen by the family from about 18 to 24 months of age, on the other hand, the earlier these symptoms are detected and the quicker the visit to the doctor for definitive diagnosis, the more chance the person will have to live a normal life.

It should be noted that autism spectrum disorder is a spectrum and varies from mild to severe. Also, autism spectrum disorder is lifelong and has no definitive treatment, but with the help of rehabilitation, a person with autism can acquire life skills and live an independent life.

What happened when Norkid was born?

According to what was said, it can be seen that identification, early and targeted intervention is one of the most key components for the rehabilitation of children with autism. The high prevalence of autism spectrum disorder, low and late diagnoses, as well as the excessive confusion of families after the diagnosis of their children, were the problems that brought the Neurokid team together and Neurokid was born.

What services does your application provide?

4 sections have been implemented in today’s version of Neurokid, which are:

Diagnostic test:

In this test, by answering multiple-choice questions, parents find out if their child has warning signs of autism spectrum disorder and if they need to be followed up by specialists or not.

Doctor and consultant:

Families with autistic children can have access to medical and rehabilitation services provided by experienced specialists in the field of autism, and appointments will be made for them in less than 48 hours.

Cognitive games:

15 cognitive games with more than 200 stages are designed with the aim of improving cognitive processes such as attention, memory, learning, problem solving of children (especially children with autism), in addition, a unique personality during the games, children with disabilities It accompanies autism which will help improve their social interaction.

Databases:

Families with autistic children can find the address, phone number, and information of all autism schools and rehabilitation centers related to autism spectrum disorder under welfare supervision in the city where they live.

All the content of Neurokid is prepared by the expert team in this field, although this content is not a substitute for diagnostic and rehabilitation services and is only for general education.

This application has been in the market for almost a month and its official unveiling was held on December 3rd in the hall of the scientific and technological assistant of the president.

What is the importance of cognitive issues?

We all depend on the cognitive functions of our brain to perform each of our daily activities. If any of these cognitive functions are disturbed, we will have problems in doing various tasks. Some of these functions are impaired in children with autism in different spectrums, so autistic people with rehabilitation can gain their abilities to an acceptable level according to the spectrum they are in.

From your point of view, what measures are needed to increase the cognitive knowledge of the general public?

Increasing the cognitive knowledge of the general public requires long-term programs, but in the short term, it is also possible to do things like creating content on social networks, creating awareness campaigns, holding knowledge-enhancing workshops and events on related occasions, etc. used.

How do neurokid games affect the cognitive processes of autistic children?

One of the most important parts of the Neurokid application is the examination of cognitive functions under the shadow of autism, among which attention, concentration, visual memory, learning, recognition of emotions, problem solving, etc. can be mentioned. After the cognitive analysis of the most popular international children’s games that had millions of installs, we designed 15 personalized mini-games for people on the autism spectrum in three levels: mild, moderate, and severe, with a total of more than 200 game stages.

This part of the application, while creating fun times for autistic children, will lead to the improvement of their cognitive functions, and as we mentioned before, with the accompaniment of a unique character during the game, their social interaction will also improve.

With what purpose did Neurokid enter the world of autism?

Neurokid entered the world of autism with the aim of helping early diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, solving the essential needs of the family online and creating enjoyable moments along with education for children with this disorder.

We chose the icons of this application after reviewing more than 200 domestic and international applications, of course, the scientific and practical experiences of the group members were very helpful in this matter.

What is the meaning of the screening test in Neurokid and what parts does it consist of?

In the diagnostic test section, 3 tests in different age groups have been selected in consultation with experts in this field and can guide families in recognizing the warning signs of autism spectrum disorder in their children. Also, if a person is suspected of having autism in the diagnosis test, they will be referred to a psychiatrist by a process that has been designed.

Has Neurokid gone through human trials to validate its services?

Currently, the research part of our project is being carried out under the supervision of experts at the Iran University of Medical Sciences after the approval of the referees.

Do you have records related to autism disorder in your team?

All the members of the team have related scientific and practical records in the field of autism, in fact, the key members of the team got to know each other from their activities in the Iranian Autism Association and the Brain and Cognitive Clinic. Because of that, they have closely touched the problems of this group and their families, and through direct contact with autistic people, they are well acquainted with their problems.

What groups have you supported so far?

We received support indirectly through participation in numerous events and appeals. On the other hand, despite the very long and sometimes strict judging of each of these events, until now, Norkid has managed to get a favorable opinion from the judges in calling for the growth and flourishing of the University of Tehran; The regulation of support for startups and creative and technological companies in the field of cognitive sciences and technologies has become the headquarters of the development of cognitive sciences and technologies. Also, Norkid has been able to become one of the finalists of the Brain West investment event and won the award for the best cognitive updates in the 5th serious games competition.

Did you contact the Autism Association?

Yes, we are in close contact with the forum, and we have also gotten to know some of the team members in this way, but there is no ownership involved.

How is Neurokid’s revenue generation model?

Neurokid’s revenue model is freemium, and important parts of it, such as diagnostic and screening tests, cognitive games, and databases, are free. Of course, in the doctor and consultant department, which is like a bridge between autism specialists and the target community, Neurokid receives a percentage of the amount paid by the target community as a referral fee.

What mission does your team pursue by working in this area?

• Providing free access to a valid and structured screening test for families with children under 7 years old
• Designing suitable cognitive games for people with autism with the aim of improving their cognitive processes
• Ease of access to counseling by experts and expert counselors in the field of autism
• It is possible for families with autistic children to use essential databases

Is there a business similar to Norkid?

In a comprehensive way, no, but in a single part, yes, many applications have been made in the international field with the axis of autism. On the other hand, by reviewing more than 200 international applications, we realized that most of them do not have good functional and graphic quality, also a limited number of them that have good quality, evaluate only one area and are not comprehensive.

In this regard, we can mention the Autispark application, one of the quality applications in India, which only offers cognitive games, although the games are not provided for free in this application, or the ASD tests application, a screening application. It is decent, but only the screening part of the application is remarkable. While we at Norkid have four basic divisions that are unique in their own way, we hope to be able to enter international markets in the coming years.

What is your competitive advantage?

Our point of difference compared to our competitors is the comprehensiveness of the processes defined in the application, in addition to the graphic quality and appropriate performance. For example, there are apps that offer screening tests but only do the test and leave the family after creating an initial stress about the possibility of their child being autistic, while in Neurokid, after Responding to parents, if a child suspected of autism is diagnosed, they are referred to a psychiatrist and the process of accompanying the family is maintained until the final diagnosis is determined.

After a final diagnosis, families will have access to a network of experienced autism specialists and can begin the rehabilitation process for their child. In fact, the Neurokid application has been implemented with a special focus on the needs of Iranian families, besides, it is connected to a network of experts and related organizations by being established in a specialized accelerator in the field of cognition.

What is your vision for the future of Norkid?

The vision of the Neurokid application for the next 5 years is to develop this space for all children with neurodevelopmental disorders, which include attention and concentration deficit disorders, learning disorders, and mental disabilities.