ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
INTRODUCTION

One of the most common childhood-onset conditions is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). A Centers for Disease Control study based on 2003 data indicated that 7.8% of children aged 4-17 in the U.S. have been diagnosed with ADHD and almost 15% of 16-year old boys had been diagnosed with ADHD. In a July 2008 statement, the CDC estimated that about 5% of all youth may have ADHD, a rate that will probably seem too low to those living or working in environments were the rate seems to be closer to 10%.

One of the earliest descriptions of what would now be considered ADHD was provided in 1798 by physician Sir Alexander Crichton. In An inquiry into the nature and origin of mental derangement. Comprehending a concise system of the physiology and pathology of the human mind and a history of the passions and their effects,, there is a chapter on "Attention", in which Crichton wrote:

"The incapacity of attending with a necessary degree of constancy to any one object, almost always arises from an unnatural or morbid sensibility of the nerves, by which means this faculty is incessantly withdrawn from one impression to another. It may be either born with a person, or it may be the effect of accidental diseases.

"When born with a person it becomes evident at a very early period of life, and has a very bad effect, inasmuch as it renders him incapable of attending with constancy to any one object of education. But it seldom is in so great a degree as totally to impede all instruction; and what is very fortunate, it is generally diminished with age."

The National Institute of Mental Health provides some more of the history, although they attribute the first description to Dr. Heinrich Hoffman in 1845:

A physician who wrote books on medicine and psychiatry, Dr. Hoffman was also a poet who became interested in writing for children when he couldn't find suitable materials to read to his 3-year-old son. The result was a book of poems, complete with illustrations, about children and their characteristics. "The Story of Fidgety Philip" was an accurate description of a little boy who had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Yet it was not until 1902 that Sir George F. Still published a series of lectures to the Royal College of Physicians in England in which he described a group of impulsive children with significant behavioral problems, caused by a genetic dysfunction and not by poor child rearing—children who today would be easily recognized as having ADHD. Since then, several thousand scientific papers on the disorder have been published, providing information on its nature, course, causes, impairments, and treatments.

Images of Crichton's and Still's articles can be found here.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A Look at ADHD (PDF File)
National Institute of Health, 2004
A 49-page booklet providing an overview of ADHD

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (PDF File)
National Institute of Mental Health, 2003

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Differential Diagnoses, Comorbidity, and Prognosis
Leslie E. Packer, PhD, 1998 (last updated January 2009)

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (PDF File)
Mary Fowler, 2002
Informative overview covering symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and school issues

Identifying and Treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder:  A Resource for Home and School (PDF File)
U.S. Dept. of Education, 2008

Treatment of ADHD
Leslie E. Packer, PhD, 1998 (last updated June 2009)
General information and answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about treating ADHD

Safety and Accident Risks in ADHD
Leslie E. Packer, PhD, 1998 (last updated January 2009)
Food for thought for parents and teachers

ADDults: ADHD in Adulthood
Leslie E. Packer, PhD, 2004 (last updated January 2009)
An overview of the condition and some concerns that adults with the disorder may have 

Screening Tool for ADHD in Adults
by Daniel G. Amen, M.D, 1995
A checklist of behaviors for consideration when assessing an adult for ADHD

The Management of Adult Attention Deficit Disorder
by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D. and John J. Ratey, M.D., 1992
Fifty practical tips for managing adult ADHD

Mis-diagnosis and Dual Diagnosis of Gifted Children: Gifted and LD, ADHD, OCD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder (PDF File)
James T. Webb, 2000

For Your Reference Shelf
Some books and videos for parents on ADHD

Diagnosed Attention Deficit Hyperactivity (PDF File)
Prevalence and patterns compiled by the National Center for Disease Control

International Consensus Statement on ADHD
Statement of concerns by scientists about media portrayal of ADHD (2002)

Links
Other sites with information related to ADHD in both adults and children.

ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER - POINTS OF INTEREST

Don't forget to visit the Education Information Section for articles on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and school-related problems. Links for educators on ADHD can also be found in the Education section.

Is your child or student "terminally disorganized?" Check the Executive Dysfunction Information Section for information on this often over-looked source of academic and behavioral problems.

Is your child having sleep problems?  There's a section on sleep disorders on this site with information on ADHD and sleep problems and tips for helping your child get a good night's sleep.

LEARN MORE ABOUT IT

Try these activities to increase your awareness (external links open in new windows, and you may need plug-ins such as Flash or RealPlayer for some of them): 

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