OBJECTIVE: Although several studies suggest heritability of ADHD, only a few investigations of possible associations between people at risk and neural abnormalities in ADHD exist. In this study, we tested whether parents of children with ADHD would show atypical patterns of cerebral activations during forethought, a feature of working memory. METHOD: Using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), we compared 12 parents of children with ADHD and 9 parents of control children during a forethought task. RESULTS: Parents of children with ADHD exhibited significantly increased neural activations in the posterior lobes of the cerebellum and in the left inferior frontal gyrus, relative to parents of control children. CONCLUSION: These findings are consistent with previous reports in children and suggest the fronto-cerebellar circuit's abnormalities during forethought in parents of children with ADHD. Future studies of people at risk of ADHD are needed to fully understand the extent of the fronto-cerebellar heritability.
OBJECTIVE: Although several studies suggest heritability of ADHD, only a few investigations of possible associations between people at risk and neural abnormalities in ADHD exist. In this study, we tested whether parents of children with ADHD would show atypical patterns of cerebral activations during forethought, a feature of working memory. METHOD: Using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), we compared 12 parents of children with ADHD and 9 parents of control children during a forethought task. RESULTS: Parents of children with ADHD exhibited significantly increased neural activations in the posterior lobes of the cerebellum and in the left inferior frontal gyrus, relative to parents of control children. CONCLUSION: These findings are consistent with previous reports in children and suggest the fronto-cerebellar circuit's abnormalities during forethought in parents of children with ADHD. Future studies of people at risk of ADHD are needed to fully understand the extent of the fronto-cerebellar heritability.
Authors: Mei Hung Chi; Ching-Lin Chu; I Hui Lee; Yi-Ting Hsieh; Ko Chin Chen; Po See Chen; Yen Kuang Yang Journal: Clin Psychopharmacol Neurosci Date: 2019-11-20 Impact factor: 2.582