The Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) increased rates detected in children may be caused by a wrong diagnosis of the patient due to common immature behavior for ages 5 and lower, according to a study at Taipei Veterans General Hospital.
The study conducted by a research team in Taiwan shows that child’s birth dates play a significant role in the risk of developing the disorder as well.
Preschool and school-age children born in August could show a higher risk of being diagnosed with ADHD in comparison to their classmates born in later months, said the lead author of the study Dr. Mu-Hong Chen from Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan. A child’s age comparative to his or her social groups may be a significant aspect of the diagnosis of the disorder, he added.
The ADHD is diagnosed when the patient shows an inability to sustain attention and control activity levels as well as impulse control. Yet a new study published in the Journal of Pediatrics claims that the attention disorder is over-diagnosed in kids worldwide as sometimes the immaturity of children is mistaken for attention deficit and hyperactivity.
Children’s environment plays a significant role in their brain development, especially when their age groups doesn’t match with theirs. Children who have not fully matured brains surrounded by other children in the same grade who do increases the risk for them to show inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness, according to Dr. Chen.
“Our findings emphasize the importance of considering the age of a child within a grade when diagnosing ADHD and prescribing medication for the treating ADHD,” said the lead author of the study Dr. Mu-Hong Chen.
Further, on ADHD diagnosed on kids
The disorder can cause inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, however, that’s a common feature in the behavior of toddlers and kids up to 7 years old. Kids, especially toddlers, are known to always be drifting through their own thoughts as children show to be very imaginative. So it’s not abnormal for children to show low interest when taking exams surrounded by children older than them, and showing hyperactivity and impulsiveness as a response.
These attributes raise the question of whether the number of ADHD patients is really increasing due to unknown factors, or the disease is being diagnosed based on wrong data interpretation. As many drugs are involved in the ADHD treatment it seems pertinent to know if the disorder is really present in all children diagnosed with ADHD or if it was just incorrectly diagnosed in a vast majority of the cases due to elevated levels of immaturity or hyperactivity
Neuroscientists, however, doesn’t believe the condition exists at all, as they argue that everyone will display all, if not some of the symptoms during their lifetime. Researchers urge the relevant authorities to ensure that evaluations for ADHD are accurate and rely on a variety of sources of information that sustain the doctor’s opinion in deciding whether the diagnosis is met.
Source: Telegraph