ADHD and Cerebral Palsy PDF

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Summary report of ADHD and Cerebral Palsy including description, risk factors, and treatment ...

Description

ADHD Definition Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood. Most cases are diagnosed when children are 6 to 12 years old but can also be discovered later in adolescence. The mental health disorder that affects people's behaviour, causes above-normal levels of hyperactivity, impulsive behavior, inattentiveness, sleep problems, and difficulty regulating temperament, and is often associated with co-occurring disorders including disruptive, mood, anxiety, and substance abuse. Risk Factors With an estimated 6.1 million U.S. children 2–17 years of age (9.4%) that had ever received an ADHD diagnosis (Taylor and Frances, 2018), scientists found evidence of genetic and environmental factors that may influence the probability of the diagnosis, but the data was inconsistent, concluding that there is no single henirited or non-inherited factors also contribute to its aetiology. Genetic Factors ADHD tends to run in families and at a higher rate in males than females. Another genetic factor that was evidently associated with ADHD is dopamine receptor genes or codes for proteins and enzymes involved in the dopamine pathway. Copy number variants (CNVs) are the type of chromosomes structural variant, and meta-analysis showed correlation between duplication and deletion that implicated aetiology of neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD. Environmental Factors

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Clinical and epidemiological associations show a consistent relationship between prenatal exposure to maternal cigarette smoking, alcohol, drug use and stress/anxiety in pregnancy (PMC 2012), Low birth weight and prematurity, toxins and diet (eg. pollution and manufactured organic compounds), and psychosocial adversity (eg. social class, poverty) also were found as common contribution factors (ADHD Institution 2019). Treatment ADHD treatments are combined into both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapy which helps improve and regulates ADHD symptoms. Non-pharmacological therapy It includes behavioral and psychosocial strategies which includes: behavioral and parenting training, coaching programs, cognitive-behavioral therapy, support group and psychoeducation, lifestyle changes, and dietary modifications (CHADD, 2017) Pharmacological therapy Medical treatment for ADHD is divided into stimulant and non-stimulant. Stimulant medication works by increasing the amounts of the brain chemicals called dopamine and norepinephrine to improve the patient’s concentration and helps them focus better. Common stimulant medication includes:

amphetamine-based

stimulants

(Adderall,

Dexedrine,

Dextrostat),

dextromethamphetamine (Desoxyn), dextromethylphenidate (Focalin), and methylphenidate (Concerta, Daytrana, Metadate, Ritalin). Non-stimulant on the other hand increases the levels of norepinephrine and it has less side effects that stimulant medication that the patient can handle.Common non-stimulant medication includes: atomoxetine (Strattera), antidepressants like nortriptyline (Pamelor), guanfacine (Intuniv), clonidine (Kapvay) . (Healthline, 2013) or or bupropion or nortriptyline in adults (Sophie  Vergnaud, 2019)

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CEREBRAL PALSY Definition Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of permanent movement disorders that and it’s one of the most common neurological disabilities that appears in childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time but they often include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensation, vision, hearing, swallowing, and speaking. Risk factors Meta-analysis studies conclude that risk factors for Cerebral Palsy falls under two categories: Congenital CP and Acquired CP. Congenital CP i s related to brain damage that happened before or during birth. The majority of CP (85%–90%) is congenital (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019), and risk factors include: Low birth weight or preterm birth, multiple gestations, infertility treatments, infections during pregnancy, fever during pregnancy, blood factor between mother and fetus does not match, exposure to toxic chemicals, maternal medical conditions (like abnormal thyroid function and seizures), and complicated labor and delivery (NIH, 2016). Acquired C  P A small percentage of CP is caused by brain damage that occurs more than 28 days after birth, and it includes: infection (of the brain), injuries (to the brain), and problems with blood flow to the brain. Treatment Children and adults with cerebral palsy require long-term care with a medical care team, and their treatment consists of: medication (muscle or nerve injections and oral muscle relaxants), therapies (physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, and recreational

therapy) and lastly, surgical procedures ( o rthopedic surgery and cutting nerve fibers; selective dorsal rhizotomy). (Mayo Clinic, 2019)

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Reference

1. Taylor and Francis Online (2018), Prevalence of Parent-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Associated

Treatment

Among

U.S.

Children

and

Adolescents,

2016

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/pubs.html 2. US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health (2018), Prevalence of Parent-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Associated Treatment Among U.S. Children and Adolescents,2016 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5834391/#:~:text=In%202016%2C%20a n%20estimated%206.1,2%E2%80%9317%20years%20of%20age. 3. US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health (2012), Prenatal exposure to cigarette smoke or alcohol and cerebellum volume in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and typical development https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3309529/ 4. ADHD

Institution

(2019)

Environmental

Risk

Factors

https://adhd-institute.com/burden-of-adhd/aetiology/environmental-risk-factors/#:~:text= Environmental%20risk%20factors%20associated%20with,and%20environmental%20exp osure%20to%20lead 5. CHADD

(2017),

12

Behavioral

Programs

for

Managing

ADHD,

https://chadd.org/adhd-weekly/12-behavioral-programs-for-managing-adhd/ 6. Healthline

(2017),

ADHD

https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/treatment-overview

4

treatment

options,

7. Sophie Vergnaud (2019) Choosing the Best ADHD Medication: A Treatment Guide for Adults

and

Children,

GoodRx

https://www.goodrx.com/blog/the-best-adhd-medication-treatment-guide-for-adults-and-c hildren/ 8. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (2019), Causes and Risk Factors of Cerebral Palsy https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/cp/causes.html  9. NIH,

(2016),

What

are

the

risk

factors

for

cerebral

palsy?,

https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/cerebral-palsy/conditioninfo/risk-factors 10. Mayo

Clinic,

(2019),

Cerebral

Palsy

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cerebral-palsy/diagnosis-treatment/drc-2 0354005

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