Breakthrough ADHD treatment could ‘transform the lives of children’

A breakthrough in treating attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) could “significantly improve” the lives of children with the condition, experts say.

A new study found that brain stimulation combined with cognitive training can improve symptoms of ADHD.

“ADHD is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders affecting children across the world,” Ornella Dakwar-Kawar, a post-doctoral researcher at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said in a press release.

“Treating the condition with medication improves a child’s attention span and overall mood, however … there can be side effects including headache and a loss of appetite,” Dakwar-Kawar added.

“There is therefore a pressing need for developing and testing novel, non-pharmacological interventions for ADHD.” 

ADHD symptoms include trouble paying attention, overactivity and impulsive behaviors, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC estimates that 6 million children in the US ages 3 to 17 years have been diagnosed with ADHD. The condition is usually treated with a combination of behavior therapy and medication.

Researchers at the University of Surrey and the Hebrew University conducted a clinical trial with 23 children ages 6 to 12 who were unmedicated.

The researchers administered a non-invasive brain stimulation with a mild electrical current running through two electrodes. Cognitive treatment included problem solving and reading comprehension.

After two weeks, 55% of the children showed significant clinical improvements in their ADHD symptoms, as reported by their parents, in comparison to 17% of children in the control group who received placebo brain stimulation.

The improvements were maintained at three weeks post-trial, with 64% reporting positive effects from the treatment compared to 33% in the control group.

The study, published in the journal Translational Psychiatry, also found that participants had changes in their brain electrical activity patterns, even three weeks after treatment.

“I believe that the scientific community is duty-bound to investigate and develop ever more effective and longer-lasting treatments for ADHD,” said Roi Cohen Kadosh, co-lead of the study and professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Surrey.

“The findings we demonstrate in our study suggest that a combination of transcranial direct current stimulation (tRNS), which is shown to be safe with minimal side effects, has the potential to transform the lives of children and their families,” Kadosh added.

“The results from this proof-of-concept study, together with previous results we received using tRNS, increase our confidence that in the future non-invasive brain stimulation may be able to provide an alternative to medication as a treatment pathway for children,” Kadosh continued.

“However, our important test will be the results from a multi-centre clinical trial with a larger sample that we will start soon.” 

Scientists noted that further research and trials would need to be done to make brain stimulation a practical therapy for children with ADHD.

“This is an important first step in offering new therapeutic options for ADHD. Future studies, with larger and more varied samples, should help establish this as a viable therapy for ADHD, and help us understand the underlying mechanisms of the disorder,” said Dr. Mor Nahum, co-lead of the study and head of the Computerized Neurotherapy Lab at the Hebrew University.

“If the results will be replicated in future larger studies we will be able to offer a novel, promising non-invasive, and safe treatment to large number of children and their families not only in the field of ADHD but in other neurodevelopmental disorders,” said Professor Itai Berger, co-lead of the study.