Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; diagnosis ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Humans

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; complications ; Case-Control Studies ; Child ; Data Interpretation, Statistical ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Sleep Disorders, Intrinsic ; complications

OBJECTIVE: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a heterogeneous disorder with contradictory findings about smell detection function. It is not clear if the parent perceived behavior related to olfactory function is associated with age, gender, severity of ADHD, and cooccurring symptoms of anxiety and oppositional behavior in children with ADHD. METHODS: Participants were a clinical sample of 104 children and adolescents with ADHD using DSM-IV diagnostic criteria by a semi-structured interview. Parent perceived behavior related to olfactory processing function was assessed trough a questionnaire. The parent reported Olfactory Functioning Checklist was used to evaluate "seeking behavior and over-responsiveness to smell (SSBO)" and "smell detection ability (SDA)". RESULTS: ADHD and separation anxiety symptoms count (severity) predicted the SDA scale score. None of the variables of gender, age, ADHD subtypes, co-morbidity with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and symptom count of ODD predicted SSBO and SDA scales' scores. CONCLUSION: Parent reported behavior related to olfactory detection impairment increased with higher ADHD and anxiety severity. It is independent of age and gender.
Adolescent ; Anxiety ; Anxiety, Separation ; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders ; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; Automatic Data Processing ; Checklist ; Child ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Humans ; Parents ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Smell

One of the most common psychiatric disorders in children is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Its course and outcome are heterogeneous. Sensory processing problems impact the nature of response to daily events. ADHD and sensory problems may occur together and interact. No published review article about sensory processing problems in children with ADHD were found. A systematic search, conducted on Pub-Med (up to January 2010), and Google Scholar, yielded 255 abstracts on sensory processing problems in children including 11 studies about sensory problems in children with ADHD. Sensory processing problems in children with ADHD is not a well studied area. Sensory processing problems in children with ADHD are more common than in typically developing children. Findings do not support that ADHD subtypes are distinct disorders with regard to sensory processing problems. However, co-morbidity with oppositional defiant disorder and anxiety are predictors of more severe sensory processing problems in children with ADHD.
Anxiety ; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders ; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; Child ; Humans

OBJECTIVE: Deficits in olfactory function are common features in neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders. Olfactory processing is related to dopamine metabolism and orbitofrontal cortex functioning, both known to be involved in the neurobiology of ADHD. Some investigations suggested alterations in olfactory processing (identification and detection threshold) in patients with ADHD. Despite increasing knowledge, controversy about this topic still exists regarding children with ADHD. This study was conducted to help elucidate some of this controversy. METHODS: 50 participants (8-15 years, mean=10.70+/-1.77) with ADHD were compared to 50 controls. The two groups were well matched for age, gender and Mean School Scores (MSS). We assessed odor identification and threshold through a smell test composed of two tests of identification and detection threshold. Odor detection threshold was assessed with the odorant phenyl ethyl alcohol solved in propylene glycol using a single staircase method. Odor identification was assessed with chemical essences of five common odorants. RESULTS: The mean Sensory Identification Score for children with ADHD and the control groups were 3.76 (1.06) and 4.46 (0.76), respectively (p<0.001). The mean for Sensory Threshold Score for ADHD and control group was 6.4 (3.35) and 9.75 (2.16), respectively (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: This study replicated altered olfactory performance in ADHD. Substantial olfactory deficits across the two domains of identification and detection threshold are observed in children with ADHD. These deficits do not seem to be a result of olfactory task difficulty and are not influenced by age, gender and MSS. Further studies are required to investigate whether olfactory function can be used as a biological marker for early diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of ADHD.
Alkenes ; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; Biomarkers ; Child ; Dopamine ; Early Diagnosis ; Ethanol ; Humans ; Neurobiology ; Odors ; Prognosis ; Propylene Glycol ; Sensory Thresholds ; Smell