ADHD
Links to ADHD Information:
- Learning Disabilities Online - ADHD
- Outside the Box
- The Parent Advocate
- One ADD Place
- ADHD: A Place to Start
ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Kids and adults can have ADHD or ADD which is the same thing, but without the hyperactive component.
Ritalin and other medications have been the traditional treatment for ADHD, but it doesn’t do the whole job. Along with medication, behavior modification, therapy and learning and emotional support are vital.
Kids with ADHD have trouble paying attention and focusing, have trouble sitting still, have trouble organizing and taking notes, are unable to remember a list of things to do, and have problems with social skills and various behaviors. For instance if you tell a child with ADHD to make his bed, do the dishes, and then take out the trash, the only thing he hears is take out the trash. Everything prior to this is gone.
Some kids with ADHD benefit from smaller classes or specialized programs and other adaptations. Some do quite well in a regular classroom setting.
Diagnostic Criteria for the most common mental disorders including:
description, diagnosis, treatment, and research findings can be found
in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fourth
Edition (DSM-IV), published by the American Psychiatric Association,
Washington D.C., 1994, the main diagnostic reference of Mental Health
professionals in the United States of America.
The official DSM IV diagnostic criteria for ADD follow:
A. Either 1 or 2:
1. Six or more of the following symptoms of inattention
have persisted for at least six months to a degree
that is maladaptive and inconsistent with developmental level:
a. Often fails to give close attention to details or makes
careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities
b. Often has difficulty sustaining attention in
tasks or play activities
c. Often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly
d. Often does not follow through on instructions and fails
to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace
(not due to oppositional behavior or failure to understand
instructions)
e. Often has difficulty organizing tasks and activities
f. Often avoids, dislikes, or is reluctant to engage in tasks
that require sustained mental effort (such as homework)
g. Often loses things necessary for tasks or activities (toys,
school assignments, pencils, books, or tools)
h. Is often easily distracted by extraneous stimuli
i. Is often forgetful in daily activities
2. Six or more of the following symptoms of hyperactivity-
impulsivity have persisted for at least six months to a
degree that is maladaplive and inconsistent with developmental level:
Hyperactivity
a. Often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat
b. Often leaves seat in classroom or in other
situations in which remaining seated is expected
c. Often runs about or climbs excessively in situations in which it is
inappropriate (in adolescents or adults, may be limited to
subjective feelings of restlessness)
d. Often has difficulty playing or engaging in
leisure activities quietly
e. Is often "on the go" or often acts as if "driven by a motor"
f. Often talks excessively
Impulsivity
g. Often blurts out answers before questions have been completed
h. Often has difficulty awaiting turn
i. Often interrupts or intrudes on others (such
as butting into conversations or games)
B. Some hyperactive, impulsive, or inattentive symptoms that
caused impairment were present before age 7 years
C. Some impairment from the symptoms is present in two or more
settings (such as in school or work and at home)
D. There must be clear evidence of clinically significant
impairment in social, academic, or occupational functioning
E. The symptoms do not occur exclusively during the course
of a pervasive developmental disorder, schizophrenia, or another
psychotic disorder and are not better accounted for by another
mental disorder (such as a mood, anxiety, dissociative, or
personality disorder)
ADHD Types Using DSM-IV criteria
ADHD, predominantly inattentive type
Meets inattention criteria (section Al) for the past 6 mo
ADHD, predominantly hyperactive-impulsive type
Meets hyperactive-impulsive criteria (section A2) for the past 6 mo
ADHD, combined type
Meets criteria for section Al and section A2 for the past 6 mo
ADHD, not otherwise specified
Prominent symptoms of inattention or hyperactivity-impulsivity
that do not meet the criteria for ADHD
In partial remission
