New research from the University of Michigan Medical School suggests that it might be possible to create a growth chart of brain networks that could identify early signs of attention difficulties and, potentially, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.vThe team created the experimental growth chart by mapping the development of brain networks in more than 500 children and teens. They found networks are underdeveloped in those who have attention difficulties.

Students with ADHD and other disabilities are finding a warmer welcome on campus...Some colleges provide designated note-takers to assist students with ADHD in class, on-call academic coaches, special quiet study areas and extra test session time, among other initiatives. Some services are free; other schools charge fees to students.

A possible connection between Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and a genetic malfunction in the thalamus may explain the distractibility and physical restlessness that plague children and adults with ADHD, a group of New York University, MIT and Duke University scientists have reported.The genetic defect they’ve detected may be particularly relevant to the approximately 30 percent of the ADHD cases that are not responsive to treatment with stimulants, their study said.

Medics have connected the plastic softeners in medical tubing to neurological problems in children who have been hospitalized with critical illnesses. The neurological problems are primarily associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)...The concern with plastics relates to a type of softener, classed as phthalates. Phthalate esters are primarily used as plasticizers.

“Mom, you have the attention span of a squirrel,” my younger son told me when he was in middle school. Never mind that he had the attention span of something even less focused, perhaps a field mouse or a hummingbird. He was right. I just could not do many of the things other responsible adults did...It never occurred to me that there might be a reason for this.

Sandra Centorino feels extremely anxious most days...Keeping a list to stay focused and organized has done little to keep her on track...Well known psychiatrist Dr. Thomas E. Brown at Yale School of Medicine hears similar symptoms, from patients with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder who are having a tough time with what he refers to as managing executive functions of the brain...The link to menopause came about after women were increasingly sharing their personal stories.

White noise may help enhance cognition in children with ADHD, say researchers from the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Brussels, Belgium.1 They studied the behavioral and neurophysiological effects of white noise on attention and inhibition in 13 children with ADHD and 17 without the disorder (aged 7 to 12 years).