ADHD BRAINS

ADHD brain scans have revealed new information that might help doctors develop more effective ADHD treatments. These new findings show that the problem may in fact be due to a physical problem with the nerves in the brain.
It’s believed that perhaps as many as five percent of school-aged children and four percent of adults have ADHD--attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

ADHD brain scans have revealed new information that might help doctors develop more effective ADHD treatments. These new findings show that the problem may in fact be due to a physical problem with the nerves in the brain.
It’s believed that perhaps as many as five percent of school-aged children and four percent of adults have ADHD--attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Now, new research presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America’s shows that the problem is at least in part due to defective brain wiring. It’s believed that ADHD is due to a chemical imbalance of a brain hormone called dopamine. But this study shows an anatomical problem; brain scans of ADHD patients showed that the brain actually looks different in people with ADHD. Dr. Manzar Ashtari, the lead researcher at Long Island Jewish Hospital who took these ADHD brain scans using a technology called diffusion tensor imaging, says “These ADHD brain scans don’t just look at the structure of the brain. They dig deeper and show how the brain is actually connected.”

The ADHD brain scans in the study identified areas of the brain which were abnormal, particularly areas involved in deciding whether or not to perform a movement. “Maybe that is the reason they are very fidgety, because the part of the brain that is supposed to control motor behavior is having a problem,” says Dr. Ashtari. “The cells that actually produce dopamine reside in the brain stem, and it’s known that ADHD patients have problem with dopamine production.”

The ADHD brain scans used in the study also showed that those children with ADHD who received stimulant medicines, like Ritalin, had fewer of these brain abnormalities, suggesting that the medicines actually correct these anatomical problems.

The question is, can these ADHD brain images of abnormal brain wiring help doctors make better diagnoses, and provide inroads to better treatment? Dr. Ashtari says, “Unfortunately, we’re not there yet. Research happens step by step. If the study is replicated and we find that the problem is in the cabling of the brain, I think it will revolutionize the way these kids are treated, because then I think perhaps the drug companies will go after what really repairs those cables.”

These ADHD brain images are at least evidence that children with ADHD differ from others because their brains are truly wired differently.