The tragic story of 4 year old Rebecca Riley here in Boston is heartbreaking. Her parents are now facing murder charges for her intentional overdose with depakote and clonidine, medications Rebecca was taking for Bipolar Disorder and ADHD. It demonstrates the extreme situations parents and clinicians can face in managing these very complicated disorders. The parent stress of dealing with mental illness in this situation lead to unthinkable behavior. Psychiatric conditions are life-threatening, by intentional and unintentional means, yet are often not given the same priority as physical medical conditions. Families need comprehensive care with close monitoring to insure they are getting all the necessary supports and the safe use of medication. Even with close follow up care there are risks, but at least our chances of identifying a problem are better with more contact.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,250482,00.html

Interesting study in children associating ADHD, social competence, and higher rates of depressive symptoms.

Prior research with both community and clinical samples has documented that rates of depression are significantly higher in children with ADHD than in other children. This is concerning because children with ADHD and depression, in addition to experiencing greater distress in the present are likely to have greater difficulty over the course of their development. (more…)

The myth is that we are overdiagnosing ADHD. It is true that without a proper evaluation, some children are mislabled as having ADHD who may have other reasons for their difficulty focusing. More commonly though we are underdiagnosing ADHD, particularly for those that have the inattentive, daydreamer type symptoms rather than hyperactive. 7.8% or 4.4 million children in the U.S. have ADHD. Correctly identifying ADHD is critical for their school success. See the attached ABC news video link regarding identifying symtpoms of ADHD. http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=local&id=4855551

Pilot studies have indicated that omega-3 fatty acids can positively impact cognition and behavior. Australia’s Murdoch Children’s Research Institute is now launching a larger study to examine the benefits of omega-3’s in greater detail. 250 children with and without ADHD will be enrolled in the trial to compare learning, attention, memory, reaction time, and behavior in children taking omega-3 supplements versus those taking a placebo pill. It is wonderful to see the academic community’s interest expanding to research non-traditional approaches to care.

http://www.fishupdate.com/news/fullstory.php/aid/6063/New_study_into_effects_of_omega_3_against_ADHD.html