ADHD: Is it Over Diagnosed?
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Are Parents to Blame?
He isn’t the only one feeling that way. Many feel that the problem isn’t with the children; it is with the parents, viewed by many as preferring a pill over proper discipline. At the first sign of any behavior resembling hyperactivity, they make an appointment with the doctor.
ADHD is such a prevalent diagnosis anymore that many parents feel pressured into having little Timmy checked out. Perhaps their reasoning stems from experience. His outbursts in the supermarket checkout line are drawing too much attention and he doesn’t respond to their discipline, so what choice do they have. Or his teacher mentions in a parent teacher conference that his disruptive behavior in class should be looked into. However, the problem may not be that simple.
Are Doctors to Blame?
A recent research study conducted by researchers at Germany’s Ruhr-Universitat Bochum and University of Basel found that adolescent psychotherapists and psychiatrists tended to diagnose patients on factors other than recognized diagnostic criteria. The participants were provided with one of four case vignettes, and then asked to give a diagnosis and recommend a therapy protocol.
In three of the four cases, the symptoms provided did not meet ADHD criteria. The fourth case was the only one to fulfill ADHD standards based on the valid diagnostic criteria. In addition, the gender of the child varied, creating a total of eight case vignettes. When two identical cases of different genders were compared, the results showed that the therapists diagnosed the male case with ADHD more frequently than they did the identical female case.
What the Study Found
In the study, many of the adolescent psychotherapists and psychiatrists based their decisions on heuristics and unclear rules of thumb. In other words, they went with their gut feelings rather than adhere to proper diagnostic criteria.
The study found that therapists made their diagnosis on prototypical symptoms which included restlessness, impulsiveness, and lack of concentration. In the identical cases, a boy exhibiting these symptoms was diagnosed with ADHD, whereas a girl was typically not.
The gender of the therapist also played a role in the diagnosis. Female therapists gave markedly fewer diagnoses for ADHD than did their male counterparts.
Root of the Problem
In recent decades diagnoses of ADHD have skyrocketed. Also noteworthy is that the dosage of medicine has increased over time. All of the adversity surrounding the diagnosis and treatment of ADHD can be traced back to a lack of research into the diagnostic parameters surrounding ADHD. As such many therapists rely on intuition and past experience, rather than adhere to the established guidelines for proper diagnosis.
About the author:
Vance Hobbes is a freelance writer and former medical researcher. Hobbes writes about many facets of the medical field, and works with CompHealth. When he's not writing the day away, he spends his free time tending to his prizewinning garden and attending any basketball game he can find.
Category: General Health, Phychiatry
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