Brain Studies Show ADHD Is Real Disease

Dionysus · #1 08-09-2007, 03:06 PM

http://health.usnews.com/usnews/heal...al-disease.htm

How can someone NOT believe it is real?

I've never understood this. Have some people never known someone who has a TRUE case of this condition? On the other hand I don't see how it is possible, since around 5% of the population has ADHD.

ForeverRoses · #2 08-09-2007, 03:31 PM

quick- somebody let Tom Cruise know! (or is that Lisa Marie Presley) who is always on TV talking about how ADD and ADHD aren't "real" disorders and we are drugging our kids when we should just be giving them vitamin supplements

squirrely girl · #3 08-09-2007, 03:41 PM

ha! god i love research like this...

OneTimeSBX · #4 08-09-2007, 04:58 PM

i believe in it 100%...i do also feel it is over-diagnosed in certain situations, just because you have a restless, bored 8 year old boy doesnt mean hes got ADD/ADHD...he may be smarter than everyone else and need more stimulation!

BigRedBeta · #5 08-09-2007, 10:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OneTimeSBX

i believe in it 100%...i do also feel it is over-diagnosed in certain situations, just because you have a restless, bored 8 year old boy doesnt mean hes got ADD/ADHD...he may be smarter than everyone else and need more stimulation!

Bingo! The over-diagnosis is why there is such a controversy. I mean growing up, seems like half the kids in my junior high were on ritalin.

Don't know what the previous diagnostic criteria were, but I know that now there is an increased pressure on having to make the diagnosis very early on, by the age of 6 IIRC...(I suppose in another 10 weeks, when I've finished my pediatrics clinical clerkship I'll know that cold) which should help separate out the children who really do have a problem and those who are just fidgety.

Drolefille · #6 08-09-2007, 11:08 PM

The thing is, no studies have shown a trend toward overdiagnosis. There are certainly individual cases. Everyone knows the mom who wants her kid medicated because she just can't deal with him. But, having looked into this somewhat for a project, there just isn't anything out there showing that there's a bunch of young boys being drugged unnecessarily.

I do understand the push to diagnose early, although I don't think it will make any difference. I think it's more related to school performance, and the fact that to get special consideration at schools, you need that diagnosis and IEP.

I'd say maybe 3 kids of 27 in my grade school class were medicated. (Those were the ones who took a pill during school hours. There wasn't the long acting medication back then AFIAK so I'm guessing.

AKA_Monet · #7 08-09-2007, 11:27 PM

Just read the article... I think the thing is now they can do a genetic screen for children who have the variant dopamine 4 receptor. Although, I think that it is difficult to measure blood dopamine levels in these children, the regulation at the receptor and its variants is interesting understanding a mental illness like ADHD/ADD.

That means better treatment and pharmaceuticals...

Overdiagnosis is not necessarily and problem, especially if one cannot obtain effective therapeutic treatments...