Developmental/Behavioral Disorders

Despite concerns about ADHD stimulant therapy as a gateway for future drug abuse, a new study shows that teens treated with stimulants later and for shorter durations, and those treated with non-stimulant medications, have higher rates of later drug abuse than their peers who have used stimulant therapy longer.

The amount of off-label uses of atypical antipsychotic drugs (AAPs) prescribed for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) raises questions about the appropriateness of AAPs for this indication.

For Contemporary Pediatrics, Dr Bobby Lazzara explains key findings from a study published in the Journal of Attention Disorders. The study looked at whether there was a correlation between ADHD and frustration tolerance in children.

Children with ADHD are more likely than their peers to consume less water, exercise less, and spend more time staring at screens-all behaviors that may be negatively affecting their ADHD symptoms, according to a new report.

Two recent studies fail to demonstrate conclusively whether the testing effect can benefit students with ADHD, but both acknowledge the need for more research about teaching strategies for learners with ADHD.

Almost 40% of children and adolescents taking ADHD medications were found to be suffering from bone loss, according to a new report, but researchers are cautioning against changing clinical practices based on these early findings.

Children with autism spectrum disorder are already twice as likely to face premature mortality, but a new study has found that comorbidities double that risk. Find out what you can do to counsel parents on health and safety measures.

What has traditionally been a condition most prevalent among school-aged, white males is increasing among all demographic groups, including females, according to a new report.

Children that lost their ASD diagnoses are often misdiagnosed early on or have their diagnosis changed as they develop, leading researchers to question the way in which ASD is diagnosed and treated.

A federal panel is asking for more research to support regular autism screening, stating in new draft guidance that there is not enough evidence that early, routine screenings recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and many others are worthwhile.

Although parents of children who turn out to have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often express concerns about their child’s development early on, providers are far less likely to respond proactively to these concerns-instead delivering a reassuring/passive response-than to address parental concerns about intellectual disability/developmental delay (ID/DD).

Children who are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) during their toddler years may be able lose the designation as they grow up but will continue to have certain ongoing behavioral and special education needs, according to a new study.

Fewer than half of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were receiving behavior therapy just before the American Academy of Pediatrics released clinical practice guidelines in 2011, according to the first national study of behavior therapy, medication, and dietary supplements to treat ADHD in children aged 4 to 17 years.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder affects 7.2% of children worldwide, a new meta-analysis estimates.

The usual 10 to 20 minutes allotted to a well-child visit may not allow enough time to pick up atypical behaviors that point to autism risk.

Many pediatricians fail to provide diagnosis and treatment that meet American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a recent study reports.

Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder are more likely than their peers to develop problems with substance abuse, the American Academy of Pediatrics says in a new clinical report that outlines strategies for reducing the risk.

Do we all need to wake up to the relationship between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and sleep deficits in our patients?

Investigators examined the neocortical architecture of the cortex of children with autism using postmortem analysis of the expression patterns of 25 cortical genes in 11 children aged from 2 to 15 years with autism and comparing them with the patterns of 11 children without autism.

Acetaminophen use during pregnancy may be linked to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in offspring.

Compared with children without autism spectrum disorder (ASD), children with ASD have significantly altered levels of certain bacteria-produced gut metabolites that affect brain function, according to a small study presented as a poster presentation at this year’s American Society for Microbiology meeting in Boston, Massachusetts.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are more than 4 times as likely to suffer from gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms as children without the disorder, according to a new meta-analysis.

As of 2010, 1 in every 68 children aged 8 years had autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This is up from 1 in 88 in 2008; 1 in 110 in 2006; and it’s up 123% from 2002 when 1 in every 150 children aged 8 years was diagnosed with ASD.

Researchers have found areas of disruption in the brains of young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), indicating that ASD originates sometime early in the prenatal period, according to a new small explorative study.

Roberto Fernández Galán, PhD, assistant professor, Department of Neurosciences, at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, discusses his study on the "noisy brain" of children with autism with Karen Donley-Hayes.

There is growing evidence that nutrition may play a role in managing symptoms of autism in some children. Here is a look at the current research supporting these nutritional interventions.

Researchers across the country and around the globe are using a technology to explore what children’s vocalizations tell us about autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other intellectual disabilities (IDs).

“It is well known that autism has a strong genetic component; that’s indisputable, but my interpretation [of this latest study] is that environmental insult also has a very strong effect.” The remark comes from Andrey Rzhetsky, PhD, Pritzker Scholar and professor of Genetic Medicine and Human Genetics at the University of Chicago, Illinois.

Although evidence suggests there are no consistent differences in prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) according to race or ethnicity, there is also abundant research demonstrating racial/ethnic disparities in the diagnosis of ASDs.

Contemporary Pediatrics was already a 4-year-old toddler in 1980 when autism was first listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the bible of US psychiatry.