Attention Deficit

At a time when millions of children and adults are taking drugs for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, the most comprehensive scientific analysis of the drugs to date has found little evidence that they are safe, that one drug is more effective than another or that they help school performance.

The 731-page report was done by the Drug Effectiveness Review Project, based at Oregon State University. The group analyzed 2,287 studies – virtually every investigation ever done on ADHD drugs anywhere in the world – to reach its conclusions.

Continue reading: Are ADHD drugs safe? Report finds little proof

Some journals are trying themselves to help readers discover marketing messages slipped in amid the scientific data. Last year BMJ, a British journal, published a piece called “Users’ guide to detecting misleading claims in clinical research reports,” which came with a picture of a reader dumping salt on a medical journal. One piece of advice: Beware when the authors break out one subgroup of patients and claim benefits from the treatment that weren’t evident in the whole group.

Continue reading: Insurers Question Studies of ADHD Drugs

Presently, some researchers and experts recognize that there is a correlation between Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorders. Some believe that ADHD is closely related to Asperger’s Syndrome. Autism Spectrum Disorders and ADHD are developmental disorders that affect the areas of social skills, behavior, and communication.
When combined with special strategies as well as transfer and generalization techniques, Play Attention has produced remarkable results for students with Autism and AD/HD. The core Play Attention system allows the teacher to modify and adjust it curriculum to accommodate the special needs of these children.

Continue reading: An Innovative Technology for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about three percent of American school children take stimulants like Ritalin regularly. However current research suggests a surprising new strategy for treating this disorder: video games linked to brain-wave biofeedback that can help kids with ADHD train their minds to tune in and settle down.

Continue reading: Can custom-made video games help children with attention deficit disorder?

As many as three million children in the United States are being treated for Attention Deficit Disorder. And they’re not the only ones. 4.4 percent of the adult population have A.D.D. or a related disorder, making it the second most common psychological problem in adults after depression. VOA’s Paige Kollock reports on a new ‘game’ that might be able to help them.

Educators say the game takes between eight and 12 months to become permanently effective. From that point on, they say, users can fall back on the skill for the rest of their lives.

Continue reading: New Video Game Shows Promise In Treatment of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD)

Can you say clueless? Stafford interviews Dr. William Dodson, MD who spoke to about 50 Hallmark Cards employees. His recommendation? If you want an employee who performs best on deadline, hire someone who has trouble staying on task. Dodson apparently specializes in treating with AD/HD. He said that adults with the neuropsychiatric condition generally respond well to urgency and fast pace. This seems true, meeting deadlines? That’s one of the greatest problems for adult AD/HD people.

Continue reading: Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Do Well on Deadline and Love a Challenge?

Every student has a right to an IEP.

It simply defines what goals and objectives will be used over the student’s academic year to achieve success. If some accommodations like computer software, lengthened test time, etc. need to be implemented, then do it. It is mandated and paid for by the federal government under IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). It does require extra effort and perhaps even extra staff to write and implement the IEP.

Continue reading: IEP: An ADHD ADD Student Right

ADHD likely affects 3% to 7% of the entire child population in the US. However, girls are frequently overlooked because they often do not display hyperactive symptoms.

When teaching at the elementary level, I found this particularly true. Girls with ADHD often were simply daydreamers with poor time management skills. While some did display the outward social and behavioral problems that their male peers did, it was not very frequent.

HealthNewsDigest.com is published by the American Psychological Association. I’ve cited bits of this report and am alarmed by its look and feel. It reads like an endorsement and advertisement for Adderall XR.

Continue reading: Girls With ADHD and ADD Are Often Overlooked

Clearly, there is no current research (2005) that has determined that ADHD is genetic either partially or entirely. While empirical data suggest that a genetic link exists, research is still sparse as scientists primarily focus on childhood onset of the disorder with little research on adult AD/HD.Andrea Chronis of the University of Maryland  has focused on AD/HD mothers and their performance as parents. In her study of 70 families with elementary-school-age children she found that:Mothers of ADHD children are 24 times as likely as the average woman to have it Fathers of ADHD children are 5 times higher than average to have it The mothers often weren’t very involved with their children The mothers had few skills to cope with …

Continue reading: Genetics and ADHD ADD

Dr. Fischer indicated that many children maintain their disorder into adulthood. The article is not clear whether this data was relevant to treated or untreated ADHD. However, clinical data suggests that perhaps 60% of ADHD children will carry their disorder into adulthood. This may be a conservative estimate.

While the data are compelling, the study is too small to conclude that ADHD alone causes these ill effects.

Continue reading: Adult ADD: Many Children Maintain their Disorder into Adulthood

The Daily Telegraph reports of a highly controversial study indicating that parents of autistic children tend to be more highly educated than parents of children with other mental problems.

Seven percent of US children are suspected of having ADHD while the British study indicates on two per cent had Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Continue reading: Autism and Parents Education

Bloomberg reports Shire Says Canada Allows Sale of Adderall XR Again after appealing Health Canada’s decision to pull Adderall XR from Canadian shelves.

Health Canada’s decision was based on Adderall XR’s link to 20 deaths.

Continue reading: ADHD ADD Drug Adderall XR Back on the Market in Canada

The public’s current perception is that using these medications will indeed ‘fix’ their broken child. Unfortunately, and according to the National Institutes of Health, more than medication is needed to address the full needs of AD/HD children. So, as long as pharmaceutical companies keep marketing in a manner which encourages the public’s ‘fix’ perception, we’ll continue to have kids who historically remove themselves from medication whenever they can (usually upon emancipation) and carry their AD/HD into adulthood with no compensatory skills.

Continue reading: New ADHD Drug to Fix Your Child