Boston, Massachusetts

Ongoing

Primary Contact Anne Arnett, PhD

Email ArnettLab@childrens.harvard.edu

Phone (617) 919-7771

Study Details

The Arnett Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital is recruiting children ages 2.5-4 who have or do not
have a biological parent or sibling with ADHD, and children ages 7-11 who have or do not have
an ADHD diagnosis for our Research on Heterogeneity in NeurOdevelopmental Disorders and
ADHD (RHINO ADHD) study. The RHINO ADHD study aims to learn more about how brain
activity relates to individual differences in ADHD symptoms. Specifically, our goals are to
characterize neurocognitive profiles of young children at familial risk for ADHD using
electroencephalography (EEG) and neuropsychological testing, and to replicate and expand the
results of a previous study completed by our Principal Investigator, Dr. Anne Arnett, among a
sample of school-age children with and without ADHD. A grant from the National Institute for
Mental Health (NIMH) provides funding for this study.

To participate in the 7-11 age group, a caregiver first remotely completes a short screening call
and then a 30-to-60-minute clinical interview about their participating child via Zoom or phone
to determine study eligibility. To participate in the 2.5-4 age group, a biological parent
completes this short screening call and remote clinical interview about their participating child,
as well as a remote clinical interview either about him/herself or a biological sibling of the
participating child. If eligible, we then send the caregiver links to online questionnaires that take
about 45 minutes to complete. Finally, the caregiver and participating child are invited to our
lab at 2 Brookline Place, Brookline, MA 02445 for a single 3-hour in-person research visit.
Children taking ADHD medication will be asked to complete a 48-hour stimulant washout or a
physician-recommended non-stimulant washout prior to this laboratory session. At the
in-person visit, children will complete an EEG and a neuropsychological assessment. The EEG
lasts about an hour, during which we put a cap similar to a swim cap on the child’s head to
non-invasively measure brain activity while he/she watches videos and plays simple games.
Please click here to view our short EEG introductory video. The neuropsychological testing lasts
about 1.5 hours and measures the child’s general cognitive development and academic skills.
We provide caregivers with a written report about the child’s performance on these tests,
including recommendations tailored to the child if applicable, to share as they wish. Families
also receive parking or MBTA reimbursement, child toys/prizes, and $40 at the in-person visit as
compensation for participation.

This study is currently ongoing. Contact us at ArnettLab@childrens.harvard.edu or (617)
919-7771 if you are interested! Check out our website:  https://www.childrenshospital.org/research/labs/arnett-lab