Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) The Facts and the Controversies

The Symptoms Inattention… Hyperactivity… Impulsivity… … beyond what is usual for a developmental age Diagnosing ADHD: The DSM Manual Do we over-diagnose kids with ADHD?

Causes? Who Knows? “Result of a combination of environmental and social factors…” Increased stresses put on a child today Requirements of increased care, attention SpongeBob? “…as well as genetic influences upon the child” Low dopamine levels Smaller cerebellum Frontal Lobe The frontal lobe is where you have your executive functioning. Where you are able to prioritize which item should I attack first. What’s the important thing that I should do today and how do I get that done before I go to item two, three, four, or five that are tackling me... as far as my daily tasks. And the cerebellum is where coordination is. And so it’s really interesting that as these kids got older and hit adolescence, their cerebellum started to look more like the same size as the typical “normal” kids, and it would explain why the hyper-activity symptoms seem to diminish and yet the frontal lobe still seemed significantly smaller than the typical “normal” child.

Treating ADHD… Medications Ritalin Adderall Dexedrine Concerta Are kids over-diagnosed today? Cylert Metadate Strattera So for all of us, whenever we would take on of these medicines, your dopamine and norepinephrine is going to be more readily available in your brain. You will be more focused. You will be more attentive, you will also, might be a little more uptight and a little more hyper-vigilant. And when you take any medicine, there’s a cost/benefit ratio. Any time you take a medicine, there’s a potential side effect. So if you don’t have ADHD and you’re going to take this medicine, any psychostimulant, any type of drug like this is going to increase your heart rate, it may elevate your blood pressure, it will decrease your appetite.

Wrap-up Prevalence Between 3-5% of total population 8% of school-age children (4.4 million)

Labeling Kids with ADHD Pros? Existing scientific knowledge can help the individual Provides rights, protections and access to services Others? Cons? Being singled-out Negative stereotypes of ADHD Excuses Others?