It's great you're looking into ABA and ESDM therapies! A recent study looked at how both affect children with autism over six months, and the results are encouraging.

Both ABA and ESDM led to improvements across multiple areas. ESDM was particularly effective for social communication, while ABA showed stronger results for adaptive behavior. In one study, children receiving ESDM showed an average IQ increase of approximately 18 points! Even parent-delivered ESDM, with minimal therapist contact, can produce gains in social attention and language.

The best approach is personalized, so clinicians should monitor progress and adjust as needed. You can find more details in this primary research article: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12116431/