New Research Offers Insight Into Cause Of Impulsivity in ADHD

We have often felt sorry for those impulsive children who blurt out the first thing that comes to their mind when asked a question, especially if they are about to get into trouble. As most parents know, that first thing that comes out as the answer is usually a lie. And then the child has to spend the rest of the hour covering up the lie, that both he and his parents know is a lie. This is a classic scene of a child with ADHD getting into trouble because of his impulsivity. Read more of the article...

Quantitative EEG and Auditory Event-Related Potentials in the Evaluation of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Effects of Methylphenidate and Implications for Neurofeedback Training

J. F. Lubar, M. O. Swartwood, J. N. Swartwood, D. L. Timmermann
University of Tennessee

Neurophysiological correlates of Attention Deficit Disorder with and without Hyperactivity (AD/HD) and effects of methylphenidate are explored using electroencephalographic (EEG) and auditory eventrelated potentials (ERPs).

In the first of four studies, a database of AD/HD individuals of varying ages and matched adolescent/adult controls is presented.

Study 2 compares controls and age-matched children with ADD, and children with ADHD on and off methylphenidate. Read more of the article...

Executive functions and developmental psychopathology.

J Child Psychol Psychiatry 1996 Jan;37(1):51-87
Pennington BF, Ozonoff S
Department of Psychology, University of Denver, CO 80208, USA.

In this paper, we consider the domain of executive functions (EFs) and their possible role in developmental psychopathologies.

We first consider general theoretical and measurement issues involved in studying EFs and then review studies of EFs in four developmental psychopathologies: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder (CD), autism, and Tourette syndrome (TS).

Our review reveals that EF deficits are consistently found in both ADHD and autism but not in CD (without ADHD) or in TS. Read more of the article...

Do executive function deficits differentiate between adolescents with ADHD and oppositional defiant/conduct disorder?

A neuropsychological study using the Six Elements Test and Hayling Sentence Completion Test

J Abnorm Child Psychol 2000 Oct;28(5):403-14
Clark C, Prior M, Kinsella GJ
School of Psychological Science, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia.
[Record supplied by publisher]

Two neuropsychological measures of executive functions--Six Elements Tests (SET) and Hayling Sentence Completion Test (HSCT)-were administered to 110 adolescents, aged 12-15 years. Read more of the article...

Neuropsychological functioning of adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2000 Feb;22(1):115-24
Walker AJ, Shores EA, Trollor JN, Lee T, Sachdev PS
Neuropsychiatric Institute, Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, Australia.

The neuropsychological functioning of adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) was compared to that of healthy controls and individuals with mild psychiatric disorders including attentional complaints.

Thirty adults in each group were examined on the Conners' Continuous Performance Test (CPT) and measures of attention, executive function, psychomotor speed, and arithmetic skills.

The ADHD group performed lower than healthy controls on most measures. Read more of the article...

ADD ADHD Neuropsychological deficits in adolescent-onset schizophrenia compared with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Am J Psychiatry 1999 Aug;156(8):1216-22
Oie M, Rund BR
National Centre for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Oslo, Norway.

OBJECTIVE: Impaired neuropsychological performance involving abstraction-flexibility, memory, motor function, and attention has frequently been reported in schizophrenia as well as in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

This study represents an attempt to compare groups of adolescents with schizophrenia and ADHD on a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery. Such a comparison affords the opportunity to ascertain differences in the degree, profile, and specificity of impairments.

The ADHD research studies noted here all look at the functional neurology of ADHD, or how the brain of a person with ADHD functions differently than the brain of a person without ADHD.

Attention Deficit Disorder and the Reticular Activating System

• What causes these various systems of the brain to get out of balance with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder individuals?
• Why would these systems become under aroused or over aroused?
• Is there one central system that controls or regulates these other systems?

The answer may be found with the Reticular Activating System. Read more of the article...

ADHD Brain: The Neurology of Inattention, Impulsivity, and Hyperactivity

What is Happening in the Brain of a Person with ADHD ?

The most recent models describing what is happening neurologically in the brains of people with Attention Deficit Disorder suggest that several areas of the brain may be affected by the disorder.

They include:

• Frontal Lobes
• Inhibitory Mechanisms of the Cortex
• Limbic System
• Reticular Activating System

Each of these areas of the brain is associated with various functions of the brain.

Above is a sample Q-EEGs of two Attention Deficit Disorder children compared to two non- ADD ADHD children. Read more of the article...

What Causes Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ?

The most recent models describing Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder suggest that several areas of the brain may be affected by the disorder. These include the

• frontal lobes
• inhibitory mechanisms of the cortex
• limbic system
• reticular activating system

Each of these areas of the brain is associated with various functions, or qualities, or abilities. Read more of the article...

Causes of ADHD