Hyperactivity News and Research

RSS

Popular antihistamine used to help young children sleep is ineffective

Although about half of pediatricians recommend that children under age 2 can be given diphenhydramine to help them sleep, the first study to look at effectiveness of the agent in children who are that young found no benefit.

4 Jul 2006

Study shows how ADHD drugs Adderall, Ritalin and Dexedrine work in brain

Although millions depend on medications such as Ritalin to quell symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), scientists have struggled to pinpoint how the drugs work in the brain.

27 Jun 2006

Midbrain, striatal and amygdalar dopaminergic dysfunction in ADHD

The brain's dopamine system, which has long been associated with reward learning and reward-related behavior, works differently in treated and untreated attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) individuals.

7 Jun 2006

Premature babies three times as likely to get hyperkinetic disorder

According to a Danish research team premature or low birth weight babies are up to three times as likely to become hyperactive, with low attention spans.

6 Jun 2006

300,000 U.S. schoolchildren diagnosed with autism

According to researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, the first-ever national estimate of the prevalence of autism in the United States has found that the disorder affects up to one in every 175 school-age children.

9 May 2006

Pten regulates neuronal arborization and social interaction in mice

While the causes of autism remain complex and mysterious, researchers are steadily adding pieces to its intricate puzzle. In what they believe to be a significant new approach to understanding "autism spectrum disorders" (ASD), researchers have developed a mouse that shows abnormal social interactions and brain hypertrophy characteristic of the disease.

3 May 2006

Exposure to cocaine before birth not linked to bad behavior in kids

Toddlers exposed to cocaine before birth exhibit no more behavioral problems than other children their age, despite early predictions that "crack babies" would grow up to be delinquents, University of Florida researchers say.

3 May 2006

Study finds nationwide increase in antipsychotic medications used for children with ADHD

A disturbing nationwide trend has been documented by a researcher at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt: Doctors are prescribing antipsychotic medicines for children with behavioral problems that are not defined as "psychosis," such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

18 Apr 2006

Skin patch to treat ADHD gets the green light

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. has approved a skin patch to control attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children.

10 Apr 2006

Majority of young people with ADHD use their medications appropriately

A major concern regarding the use of stimulant medications to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adolescents and young adults has been the risk that they will be misused or diverted to those for whom they have not been prescribed.

4 Apr 2006

Link between children's sleep-related breathing problems and daytime behavior problems

Hyperactivity, attention deficit, sleepiness, and ADHD often improved - whether or not sleep studies showed sleep apnea before surgery.

4 Apr 2006

ADHD drug not safe for kids

According to a panel of experts advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the drug Provigil, although effective in treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and teenagers, is not safe enough to win approval.

26 Mar 2006

Extreme personality poses risk of ADHD

Children with personalities marked by aggressiveness, mood swings, a sense of alienation and a need for excitement may be at greater risk for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or conduct disorder, according to a new Florida State University study.

23 Mar 2006

Genetic differences between males and females might be evened out at the rim of the nucleus

Recent research at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) reveals new insights into how cells achieve equality between the sexes.

21 Mar 2006

Wearing a special mask to bed helps children with sleep apnea breathe and sleep better

Wearing a special mask to bed helps children with sleep apnea breathe and sleep better, but a small, six-month study at Johns Hopkins Children's Center and two other pediatric hospitals suggests children aren't always using them consistently enough to reap the maximum benefits.

15 Mar 2006

TV and attention deficit disorders - is there a connection?

According to new research which in many respects runs contrary to currently held beliefs it does not appear that children who watch a lot of television necessarily have behavior problems in school.

7 Mar 2006

Study - Increases in weight after adenotonsillectomy in overweight children with obstructive sleep-disorder

A study by a University at Buffalo pediatric researcher investigating the causes of weight gain in children after they have their tonsils and adenoids removed to treat sleep-disordered breathing has shown that removing these tissues results in less fidgeting and other non-exercise motor activity.

1 Mar 2006