-=> Quoting Nancy Mcvicker to Starwitch <=-
 NM> @MSGID: 1:266/125 a491ebb0
 NM> @TID: GE 1.2
 ST>  *Attention deficit study finds differences in brain.*
 
 ST>  A study of boys with attention deficit disorder has found that parts of
 >  their brains are configured differently than normal, a finding that
 >  supports the hotly debated theory that these behavioral disorders are
 >  strongly rooted in biology.
 NM> Interesting article. Thanks for posting it. Now I'll have to try to
 NM> remember to look for the more detailed write-up in JAMA or where ever.
 
 ST>  Federal researchers have just completed a five-year study of 112 boys-
 >  half with serious behavioral and attention problems - and found that
 >  precise areas of the brain were smaller and more symmetrical in the boys
 >  with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, suggesting that there are
 >  functional differences in how they process information.
 
 ST>  "This gives us more evidence that attention deficit hyperactivity 
isord
 >  is a brain condition," said Dr. Harold Koplewicz, chairman of child and
 NM> The key word here is "more". We've already got some good evidence that
 NM> says that ADD is neurological. But that doesn't stand in the way of
 NM> the dopes who just don't wanna believe it. I doubt that any evidence
 NM> short of a definitive "how-it-happens" will convince most of them...
 NM> and some won't be convinced at all, ever.
    
 ST>  The study was conducted by federal researchers at the National 
nstitute
 >  of Mental Health and reported in this month's Archives of General
 >  Psychiatry.
 NM> Ah... not JAMA. then. Right. [scribbling title of journal]
 
 ST>  Dr. F. Xavier Castellanos and his colleagues used MRI scans to analyze 

 >  brains in normal boys and those with ADHD. They compared 12 brain regions
 >  and found that one circuit in particular was dramatically different. This
 >  circuit links the prefrontal cortex with the basal ganglia, an area of 
he
 >  brain that acts like a relay station to transfer information. The basal
 >  ganglia is also the seat of emotion.
 NM> This is the circuit that was suggested by Dr. David Comings. It's been
 NM> suggested that this circuit is the dysfunctional region in several
 NM> other neurological disorders, too. The next Big Question is, exactly
 NM> *what* is different in the functioning of the circuit, and what is the
 NM> source of that dysfunction?
 
 ST>  Structurally, the brain scans showed that the prefrontal cortex, the
 >  "command center" near the front of the brain, and the basal ganglia's
 >  caudate and globus pallidus, the "accelerator and brakes" near the
 >  middle of the brain, which are usually larger on the right in normal
 >  children, were the same size on both sides of the brain in ADHD children.
 NM> Except that this research may not be representative of *all* ADDers.
 NM> Recent research has shown that the brain in females frequently works
 NM> differently than in males (on the average, not in each and every
 NM> person), so what is true of brain development in ADD boys may not hold
 NM> true for ADD girls.
  NM> In addition, we still don't know the neurological differences between
 NM> people with various types of symptoms. Does the brain develop
 NM> differently in people with high incidence of hyperactivity than in
 NM> ADDers with low incidence of hyperactivity?
 NM> And another Big Question -- does ADD cause atypical brain development,
 NM> or does atypical brain development cause ADD?
 
 ST>  Five percent of children could suffer these developmental brain 
bnormal
 >  ities, according to federal data. The federal researchers say that the
 >  behaviors get better as the child develops, suggesting that the brain
 >  somehow compensates for the deficits.
 NM> There's not enough information on typical brain development and
 NM> function to support this conclusion. What is *known* is that the brain
 NM> continues to develop throughout life, but does most of its growth and
 NM> shaping during childhood. Statistical evidence shows that hyperactivity
 NM> often lessens after puberty, but whether this is due to neurological
 NM> compensation or to late maturing of some parts and/or functions of the
 NM> brain is unknown.
 NM> Still, even though this new information is only a teeny, tiny step
 NM> forward, every step takes us closer to full understanding of the human
 NM> brain -- the most complex piece of machinery in the world. Neat stuff.
 NM> Thanks for letting us in on it.
 NM> * SLMR 2.1a * I want a chance to *prove* that money can't buy
 NM> happiness 
 NM> -!- I killed my WildCAT!
 NM>  ! Origin: Pixie Moss BBS - Medford,NJ (609)953-2726 (1:266/125)
 NM> @PATH: 266/125 507 3615/50 396/1 270/101 268/300 316 428 380
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