Saccade adaptation in young people diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder combined type

Amanda J. Connolly, Nicole J. Rinehart, Joanne Fielding

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Growing evidence suggests Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often co-occurs with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and a better understanding of the nature of their overlap, including at a neurobiological level, is needed. Research has implicated cerebellar-networks as part of the neural-circuitry disrupted in ASD, but little research has been carried out to investigate this in ADHD. We investigated cerebellar integrity using a double-step saccade adaptation paradigm in a group of male children age 8–15 (n = 12) diagnosed with ADHD-Combined Type (-CT). Their performance was compared to a group of age and IQ-matched typically developing (TD) controls (n = 12). Parent reported symptoms of ADHD-CT and ASD were measured, along with motor proficiency (Movement ABC-2). We found, on average, the adaptation of saccade gain was reduced for the ADHD-CT group compared to the TD group. Greater saccadic gain change (adaptation) was also positively correlated with higher Movement ABC-2 total and balance scores among the ADHD-CT participants. These differences suggest cerebellar networks underlying saccade adaptation may be disrupted in young people with ADHD-CT. Though our findings require further replication with larger samples, they suggest further research into cerebellar dysfunction in ADHD-CT, and as a point of neurobiological overlap with ASD, may be warranted.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)27-34
Number of pages8
JournalNeuroscience
Volume333
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Oct 2016

Keywords

  • adaptation
  • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • cerebellum
  • Motor
  • saccade

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