Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) News and Research

RSS

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobehavioral disorder that affects 3-5 percent of all American children. It interferes with a person's ability to stay on a task and to exercise age-appropriate inhibition (cognitive alone or both cognitive and behavioral).

Experts gather in the fields of childhood and adolescent mental-health problems

Renowned experts in the fields of childhood and adolescent mental-health problems will gather in July to discuss new and effective treatments for a wide-range of mental illnesses affecting children and teens.

30 Jun 2005

Mammalian brain is far more plastic than previously thought and thus may be able to recover from serious brain injuries

Infants born prematurely and with hypoxia - inadequate oxygen to the blood - are able to recover some cells, volume and weight in the brain after oxygen supply is restored, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in Experimental Neurology.

28 Jun 2005

Danger of mixing mobile phones and motoring

The reason talking on a cell phone makes drivers less safe may be that the brain can't simultaneously give full attention to both the visual task of driving and the auditory task of listening, a study by a Johns Hopkins University psychologist suggests.

21 Jun 2005

Research suggests that children with a neuropsychiatric disease may be at risk for type 2 diabetes, and vice versa

As many as one in five children with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes may also have a neuropsychiatric disorder, according to a new study. The illnesses include depression, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, developmental delay, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder.

20 Jun 2005

Only 12 percent of pediatricians surveyed felt effective in treating overweight children

If North Carolina reflects what is happening nationally, most pediatricians across the country lack confidence in their ability to treat obesity, which is increasingly recognized as robbing children of physical vigor now and good health in later life, a new study shows.

13 Jun 2005

New dopamine transporter gene findings may be relevant for substance abuse, tobacco smoking, and ADHD

Confirming findings in a previous study, Yale researchers observed an altered availability of the dopamine transporter in healthy persons with a genetic variation linked to substance abuse and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

6 Jun 2005

New finding in studying dopamine transporter

30 May 2005

ADHD costs U.S. nearly $77 billion each year

U.S. household income losses due to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) total nearly $77 billion each year, according to a new analysis of the national large-scale survey, "Capturing America's Attention," presented today at the American Psychiatric Association (APA) annual meeting in Atlanta.

23 May 2005

Nurture as important as nature in developing ability for flexible self-control

Your ability to follow the rules of the road when driving on unfamiliar streets exists thanks to the way your pre-teen life experiences influenced the development of your brain. Individuals deprived of normal life experiences may lack this ability to control their behavior in novel situations, a new computer model suggests, providing insight into how nature and nurture may interact in the development of self-control.

20 May 2005

Nutritional composition of a mother’s breast milk may depend not just on her diet - but on her genes

“It is well known that genes control the nutrient levels in cow’s milk” said Richard B. Weinberg, M.D. “But until now, no one has considered how genes might affect human breast milk. This is the first study to demonstrate a genetic effect on human lactation.” The results were presented today at Digestive Disease Week 2005 in Chicago, Ill.

18 May 2005

Sensory intervention cab help ADHD kids

Preliminary findings from a study of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) show that sensory intervention - for example, deep pressure and strenuous exercise - can significantly improve problem behaviors such as restlessness, impulsivity and hyperactivity. Of the children receiving occupational therapy, 95 percent improved. This is the first study of this size on sensory intervention for ADHD.

15 May 2005

Combining behavior modification therapy with medication is the most effective way to improve the behavior of many ADHD children

In fact, when the two are combined, the study showed, the amount of medication required to achieve the same results as use of medication alone can be reduced by two-thirds.

10 May 2005

Research is first to test effectiveness of a new patch for treating ADHD

A new University at Buffalo study of treatments for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has found that combining behavior modification therapy with medication is the most effective way to improve the behavior of many ADHD children.

5 May 2005

EU calls for tougher warnings on antidepressants for kids

A committee of experts in Europe are calling for strong warnings to be placed on two classes of antidepressants, informing doctors and parents of the risk they could pose to children and adolescents.

25 Apr 2005

Protecting children from industrial chemicals in the environment

American children are likely to face serious health consequences from new and existing industrial chemicals in the environment, argue a group of researchers in a report in this month's premier open-access global health journal PLoS Medicine.

29 Mar 2005

Children suffering from ADHD may be ignoring visual information to their left

Children suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) may be ignoring visual information to their left and being diagnosed mistakenly as having dyslexia, according to new research by Dr Tom Manly and colleagues at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit in Cambridge and published in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Brain and Cognition.

27 Feb 2005

Methylphenidate linked to chromosomal changes

In a small but startling preliminary new study, Texas researchers have found that after just three months, every one of a dozen children treated for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with the drug methylphenidate experienced a threefold increase in levels of chromosome abnormalities—occurrences associated with increased risks of cancer and other adverse health effects.

27 Feb 2005

Early diagnosis and treatment is important for children and adolescents with bipolar disorder

"These new guidelines were formulated by a group of leading experts in child psychiatry and are the most up-to-date and comprehensive set of guidelines for the treatment of children and adolescents with bipolar disorder," said Dr. Kowatch. "They represent a major step towards practicing evidence-based medicine in this difficult to treat group of patients.

22 Feb 2005

First study to explore the use of biofeedback as a complementary treatment to asthma medication

For the estimated 20.3 million adults and 6.3 million children in the U.S. who suffer from asthma, the primary treatment is the use of medications to help reduce the underlying inflammation in the airways.