Snug Vest

Scientific studies show that Deep Pressure Therapy can help regulate the sensory system when a person feels overwhelmed by environmental input and sensory information.

People experience a calm and relaxing effect when pressure such as a firm hug, hold or swaddle is applied to the torso.

In anecdotal reports, deep touch pressure has been described to produce a calming effect in children with psychiatric disorders. Deep pressure stimulation, such as rolling up in a gym mat, has been used to calm children with autistic disorder and ADHD (Ayres 1979, King 1989)
_{— Temple Grandin, PhD.}_{Calming Effects of Deep Touch Pressure in Patients with Autistic Disorder, College Students, and Animals.}

Review third-party scientific studies from:

Beta trial participants

We conducted a beta trial to assess Snug Vest for usability, efficacy and pressure performance. 15 children with 8 caretakers participated in the study.

Child with therapist

ASD

N/S

Child with parent

ASD

SPD

ADHD

SPD

ADHD

FASD

N/S

Child with teacher

ASD

SPD

ASD

Disorders or syndromes

All were between 5-13 years old at the time of study with:

ASD

Autism Spectrum Disorder (11)

SPD

Sensory Processing Disorder (3)

ADHD

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (2)

FASD

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder (1)

Tourette Syndrome (1)

Bipolar Disorder (1)

Down Syndrome (1)

N/S

Not specified (2)

Beta kit

Each participant received a beta kit to complete the one month study. The study involved interviews, weekly questionnaires, worksheets, and diary studies.

Beta kit contents:

Worksheet and exercise booklet
Stationery kit
Beta manual
CD Instructions
Snug Vest
Pump

Usability results

Caretakers rated the Snug Vest based on 15 features.

Satisfaction level

Inflation tube location

Pump clipping mechanism

Deflation tube location

Deflation tube ease of use

Height (shoulder) adjustment

Side adjustment

Use of hook and loop

Height of collar

Chin guard

Top shoulder strap

Pockets

Dissatisfaction level

Deflation tube whistle noise

Pump

Hood

Hood drawstrings

Improvements proposed based on responses

On the commercialized 2013 version, we:

replaced pump for faster inflation rate.
eliminated hood drawstrings for safety purposes.

For future iterations:

Consider alternative deflation tubes that are less noisy while retaining current fast deflation rates.
Consider detachable hood options.

Average symptom occurrences throughout the week

Therapists, parents and teachers documented how often the children experienced anxiety, tantrums, tactile defensiveness and meltdowns each week over the course of a month.

Meltdowns

My son with ASD and Down Syndrome used your vest during speech therapy, and his speech therapist said it helped him a lot. During and after he wore it, he was a lot calmer as he sat in his seat and didn’t rock back and forth anymore.
_{— Mother}

Children’s emotions prior to, during, and after inflation sessions

Sum of all occurrences that the children experienced before, during, and 20 minutes after inflation sessions.

Negative emotions

Graph: positive emotions significantly increased

Positive emotions include very happy, happy, comfortable or calm, excited, secure, focused or attentive, and relieved.

Pressure performance

Children who completed this exercise said the pressure was “just right” through the sides, stomach, chest, upper and lower back regions.

Pressure was generally not enough on the shoulders.

Workbook of how much pressure the child feels on different parts of the body: the shoulders, chest, sides, tummy, and upper legs.

Photo of a workbook filled out

We’ve had our Snug Vest now for several months, and our autistic son uses it regularly, mostly at school. His educational assistant says it’s made a big difference in his ability to concentrate, and focus on a task or on schoolwork, and she noticed the difference almost immediately.
_{— Father}

Features

Block distractions

Hood gives a sense of comfort and blocks out overwhelming visual information such as light.

Flat labels

Labels are printed directly on the vest to minimize the tactile sensory input caused by tags.

Length adjustment

Adjustable hook and loop at the shoulders fit the child’s height and accommodate growth.

Width adjustment

Adjustable hook and loop at the sides ensure proper fit and accommodate growth around the torso.

Adjustable pressure

Breathable, inflatable vest evenly distributes adjustable pressure to the sides, shoulders, and back.

Deflate quickly

Deflate the vest by twisting the end of the deflation tube.

Inflate quickly

The hidden inflation tube attaches to the hand pump.

Pressure safe

The elastic strip in the front ensures minimal pressure is applied to the stomach and chest.

Front | Garment

1 Length adjustment

Velcro^TM at the shoulders adjust 3” according to user’s height to accommodate growth.

2 Inflation tube

Inflation tube attaches to the hand pump.

3 Deflation tube

Deflate the vest by twisting the end of the tube.

4 Elastic strip

The front elastic strip ensuresminimal pressure is placed on the stomach and chest.

Back | Inflatable

The inflatable provides evenly distributed and adjustable pressure to the sides, shoulders and back to give a hug-like squeeze.

5 Width adjustment

Velcro^TM at the sides adjust 6” around the torso to accommodate growth.

6 Layered hoodie

The hood provides a sense ofcomfort and blocks out light and overwhelming distractions.

7 Breathable holes

The holes on the inflatable provide ventilation and ensure evenpressure distribution.

Evolution of concepts

Video compilation of prototypes made and tested until commercialization.

Before Snug Vest

Shaky and wobbly handwriting, hard to read

After Snug Vest

The staff have been using [the client’s Snug Vest] quite a bit and have found it very effective. They also report that it is great that it is not too difficult to get on her, since if she is escalated, you don’t want to get too much into her space.
_{— Residential coordinator}

Post launch

We got an overwhelming amount of orders when we launched in 2013 that we could barely keep up with the demand. It was heart warming to see the positive impact it created for so many people.

After launching Snug Vest, my role shifted towards supply chain and manufacturing. I worked with suppliers, created tech packs, and developed systems so that Snug Vest can be manufactured at the highest quality.

I departed from the company in 2015 to pursue more research and design opportunities.

Snug Vest was available in the market from 2013 to 2017.