MRI scans show age-specific changes in the brains of kids with ADHD
New research has revealed that there are age-related changes in the brain function of children who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Specifically, between the ages of 8 and 12, arterial spin labeling MRI (ASL-MRI) scans of children with ADHD show significantly lower cerebral blood flow (CBF) in regions of the brain known to be related to attention, motor skills, executive function and impulsivity. Experts involved in the study suggested that this new information not only holds promise for developing age-specific treatments for kids who might struggle with symptoms related to the disorder, but it also further reinforces the growing utility of imaging in diagnosing and treating ADHD.
“Our study reaffirmed the unique brain developmental pattern that occurs in ADHD by using ASL as well as considering a more delicate age group division than previous studies,” Chul-Ho Sohn, a professor in the department of radiology at Seoul National University College of Medicine, and colleagues noted. “ASL may thus prove useful for inferring the timing of brain development in brain areas associated with ADHD, particularly in younger children.”
The study included ASL-MRI exams from 157 children diagnosed with ADHD, in addition to those of 109 typically developing controls. Participants were divided into three separate age groups: 6–7, 8–9 and 10–12.
The ADHD group displayed significantly lower CBF in the left superior temporal and right-middle frontal gyrus regions compared to the control group.
In an analysis of the ADHD group alone, children between the ages of 8 and 9 showed substantially lower CBF in the left postcentral gyrus and left middle frontal gyrus regions compared to matched controls of the same age range. Further, the 10–12-year age group also showed decreased CBF in the left superior occipital region compared to the age-matched control group.
“This study demonstrates the potential of ASL-MRI to noninvasively diagnose and evaluate changes in brain function in children with ADHD across different ages,” the group wrote. “ASL may also be useful in evaluating changes of symptoms or therapeutic effects, which would allow us to gauge the appropriate timing of treatment and evaluation, since we know from the current study that ADHD is associated with development changes in certain periods.”
The team indicated that more research with larger cohorts is needed to further understand how ADHD manifests as children get older, though they believe their results could be used as a starting point to guide future studies involving imaging.
The study abstract is available here.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.