Articles labeled: ADHD

So the question, as the article states, is “does it mean U.S. kids are being over-treated? Or that U.K. children are being under-treated”?

Experts say that’s almost beside the point, because use is rising on both sides of the Atlantic. And with scant long-term safety data, it’s likely the drugs are being over-prescribed for both U.S. and U.K. children, research suggests.

Among the most commonly used drugs were those to treat autism and hyperactivity.

In the U.K. study, anti-psychotics were prescribed for 595 children at a rate of less than four per 10,000 children in 1992. By 2005, 2,917 children were prescribed the drugs at a rate of seven per 10,000 — a near-doubling, said lead author Fariz Rani, a researcher at the University of London’s pharmacy school.

A Bellingham Washington boy, around the age of 7 years old, went missing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, while he and his family were on vacation. He disappeared on a beach where he was last seen on a concrete slab near the ocean waves. His parents desperately tried to find him in the ocean but saw nothing. The boy has ADHD and hope continues as rescuers continue to search.

The not knowing must be maddening for the parents.

TOFINO, B.C. — Searchers were out again this morning in a desperate attempt to find a seven-year-old boy who disappeared from a beach in Tofino, B.C., a day earlier.

William Pilkenton was last seen by his parents along the shore in the small coastal Vancouver Island community, where the family was on holiday.

The search area was expanded today, with police and search and rescue workers assisted by members of the public.

For those that scoff or dismiss ADHD as a viable diagnosis, now there are brain scans that show nero-biological differences. One reason ADHD children may seem immature is because important, key “mature” brain functions are about 3 years behind.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Children and teenagers with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder have developmental delays of up to three years in some regions of the brain, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

“The sequence in which different parts of the brain matured in the kids with ADHD was exactly the same as in healthy kids. It’s just that everything was delayed by a couple of years,” said Dr. Philip Shaw National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Mental Health.

Shaw said the delays are most pronounced in regions of the brain that are important for controlling thought, attention and planning.

Hurray for drugs!

ROCHESTER, Minn. — In an 18-year study on attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, Mayo Clinic researchers found that treatment with prescription stimulants is associated with improved long-term academic success of children with the condition.

A related Mayo Clinic study finds that compared to children without ADHD, children with the disorder are at risk for poor long-term school outcomes such as low achievement in reading, absenteeism, repeating a grade and dropping out of school.