Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) provides direct and quantitative assessment of cortical hemodynamic response. It has been used to identify neurophysiological alterations in medication-naïve adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Hence, this study aimed to distinguish both medication-naïve and medicated adults with ADHD from healthy controls (HC).
Method:
75 HCs, 75 medication-naïve, and 45 medicated patients took part in this study. fNIRS signals during a verbal fluency task (VFT) were acquired using a 52-channel system and relative oxy-hemoglobin changes in the prefrontal cortex were quantified.
Results:
Prefrontal cortex hemodynamic response was lower in patients than HCs (p ≤ ≤.001). Medication-naïve and medicated patients did not differ in hemodynamic response or symptom severity (p > .05). fNIRS measurements were not associated with any clinical variables (p > .05). 75.8% patients and 76% HCs were correctly classified using hemodynamic response.
Conclusion:
fNIRS may be a potential diagnostic tool for adult ADHD. These findings need to be replicated in larger validation studies.
AdamouM.FullenT.JonesS. L. (2020). EEG for diagnosis of adult ADHD: A systematic review with narrative analysis. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11, 871.
2.
Albajara SáenzA.VillemonteixT.MassatI. (2019). Structural and functional neuroimaging in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 61(4), 399–405.
3.
AlexanderL.FarrellyN. (2018). Attending to adult ADHD: A review of the neurobiology behind adult ADHD. Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine, 35(3), 237–244.
4.
AmenD. G.HendersonT. A.NewbergA. (2021). SPECT functional neuroimaging distinguishes adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder from healthy controls in Big Data Imaging cohorts. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 725788.
5.
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV-TR. Author.
6.
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-5®). Author.
7.
BrusM. J.SolantoM. V.GoldbergJ. F. (2014). Adult ADHD vs. bipolar disorder in the DSM-5 era: A challenging differentiation for clinicians. Journal of Psychiatric Practice, 20(6), 428–437.
8.
CayeA.SwansonJ. M.CoghillD.RohdeL. A. (2019). Treatment strategies for ADHD: An evidence-based guide to select optimal treatment. Molecular Psychiatry, 24(3), 390–408.
CrockettD.BilskerD.HurwitzT.KozakJ. (1986). Clinical utility of three measures of frontal lobe dysfunction in neuropsychiatric samples. International Journal of Neuroscience, 30(4), 241–248.
11.
DongY.SharmaV. K.ChanB. P.-L.VenketasubramanianN.TeohH. L.SeetR. C. S.TanicalaS.ChanY. H.ChenC. (2010). The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is superior to the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) for the detection of vascular cognitive impairment after acute stroke. Journal of Neurological Sciences, 299(1-2), 15–18.
12.
EhlisA. C.BähneC. G.JacobC. P.HerrmannM. J.FallgatterA. J. (2008). Reduced lateral prefrontal activation in adult patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) during a working memory task: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) study. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 42(13), 1060–1067.
13.
EhlisA. C.SchneiderS.DreslerT.FallgatterA. J. (2014). Application of functional near-infrared spectroscopy in psychiatry. NeuroImage, 85 Pt1, 478–488.
14.
FirstM.WilliamsJ.KargR.SpitzerR. (2015). Structured clinical interview for DSM-5 disorders, Clinical trials version (SCID-5-CT).
15.
GibbinsC.WeissM. D.GoodmanD. W.HodgkinsP. S.LandgrafJ. M.FaraoneS. V. (2010). ADHD-hyperactive/impulsive subtype in adults. Mental Illness, 2(1), e9.
16.
GsellW.De SadeleerC.MarchalantY.MacKenzieE. T.SchumannP.DauphinF. (2000). The use of cerebral blood flow as an index of neuronal activity in functional neuroimaging: experimental and pathophysiological considerations. Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy, 20(3-4), 215–224.
17.
HamiltonM. (1960). A rating scale for depression. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 23(1), 56–62.
18.
HarrisonA. G.NayS.ArmstrongI. T. (2019). Diagnostic accuracy of the Conners' adult ADHD rating scale in a postsecondary population. Journal of Attention Disorders, 23(14), 1829–1837.
19.
HayasakaY.PurgatoM.MagniL. R.OgawaY.TakeshimaN.CiprianiA.BarbuiC.LeuchtS.FurukawaT. A. (2015). Dose equivalents of antidepressants: Evidence-based recommendations from randomized controlled trials. Journal of Affective Disorders, 180, 179–184.
20.
HeinzelS.MetzgerF. G.EhlisA. C.KorellR.AlbojiA.HaeussingerF. B.HagenK.MaetzlerW.EschweilerG. W.BergD.FallgatterA. J. (2013). Aging-related cortical reorganization of verbal fluency processing: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study. Neurobiology of Aging, 34(2), 439–450.
21.
HusainS. F.McIntyreR. S.TangT.-B.Abd LatifM. H.TranB. X.LinhV. G.ThaoT. P. N.HoC. S.HoR. C. (2021). Functional near-infrared spectroscopy during the verbal fluency task of English-speaking adults with mood disorders: A preliminary study. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, 94, 94–101.
22.
InadaT.InagakiA. (2015). Psychotropic dose equivalence in Japan. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 69(8), 440–447.
23.
Ishii-TakahashiA.TakizawaR.NishimuraY.KawakuboY.KuwabaraH.MatsubayashiJ.HamadaK.OkuhataS.YahataN.IgarashiT.KawasakiS.YamasueH.KatoN.KasaiK.KanoY. (2014). Prefrontal activation during inhibitory control measured by near-infrared spectroscopy for differentiating between autism spectrum disorders and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults. NeuroImage Clinical, 4, 53–63.
24.
JainR.JainS.MontanoC. B. (2017). Addressing diagnosis and treatment gaps in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. The Primary Care Companion For CNS Disorders, 19(5), 24623.
25.
KaiserA.BroederC.CohenJ. R.DouwL.RenemanL.SchranteeA. (2022). Effects of a single-dose methylphenidate challenge on resting-state functional connectivity in stimulant-treatment naive children and adults with ADHD. Human Brain Mapping, 43(15), 4664–4675.
26.
KatzmanM. A.BilkeyT. S.ChokkaP. R.FalluA.KlassenL. J. (2017). Adult ADHD and comorbid disorders: Clinical implications of a dimensional approach. BMC Psychiatry, 17(1), 302.
27.
LeahyL. G. (2018). Diagnosis and treatment of ADHD in children vs adults: What nurses should know. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 32(6), 890–895.
28.
LiJ.YanW. J.WuY.TianX. X.ZhangY. W. (2021). Synaptosomal-associated protein 25 gene polymorphisms affect treatment efficiency of methylphenidate in children with attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: An fNIRS study. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 15, 793643.
29.
LiY.ChenJ.ZhengX.LiuJ.PengC.LiaoY.LiuY. (2022). Cognitive deficit in adults with ADHD lies in the cognitive state disorder rather than the working memory deficit: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 154, 332–340.
30.
MoffittT. E.HoutsR.AshersonP.BelskyD. W.CorcoranD. L.HammerleM.HarringtonH.HoganS.MeierM. H.PolanczykG. V.PoultonR.RamrakhaS.SugdenK.WilliamsB.RohdeL. A.CaspiA. (2015). Is adult ADHD a childhood-onset neurodevelopmental disorder? Evidence from a four-decade longitudinal cohort study. African Journal of Psychiatry, 172(10), 967–977.
31.
NikolausS.MamlinsE.GieselF. L.SchmittD.MüllerH. W. (2022). Monoaminergic hypo- or hyperfunction in adolescent and adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder?Reviews in the Neurosciences, 33(4), 347–364.
32.
OkadaE.DelpyD. T. (2003). Near-infrared light propagation in an adult head model. II. Effect of superficial tissue thickness on the sensitivity of the near-infrared spectroscopy signal. Applied Optics, 42(16), 2915–2921.
33.
ÖnerAkınAHerkenHErdalMEÇiftçiKAyMEBicerDÖncüBBozkurtOHMünirKYazganY. (2011). Association among SNAP-25 gene DdeI and MnlI polymorphisms and hemodynamic changes during methylphenidate use: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study. Journal of Attention Disorders, 15(8), 628–637.
34.
PattersonJ. (2011). F-A-S Test. In KreutzerJ. S.DeLucaJ.CaplanB. (Eds.), Encyclopedia of clinical neuropsychology (pp. 1024–1026). Springer New York.
35.
PintiP.TachtsidisI.HamiltonA.HirschJ.AichelburgC.GilbertS.BurgessP. W. (2020). The present and future use of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) for cognitive neuroscience. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1464(1), 5–29.
36.
RubiaK.AlegríaA. A.BrinsonH. (2014). Brain abnormalities in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A review. Revista de Neurologia, 58 Suppl1, S3–16.
37.
SchecklmannM.EhlisA.-C.PlichtaM. M.RomanosJ.HeineM.Boreatti-HümmerA.JacobC.FallgatterA. J. (2008). Diminished prefrontal oxygenation with normal and above-average verbal fluency performance in adult ADHD. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 43(2), 98–106.
38.
ScholkmannF.KleiserS.MetzA. J.ZimmermannR.Mata PaviaJ.WolfU.WolfM. (2014). A review on continuous wave functional near-infrared spectroscopy and imaging instrumentation and methodology. NeuroImage, 85 Pt1, 6–27.
39.
StibbeT.HuangJ.PauckeM.UlkeC.StraussM. (2020). Gender differences in adult ADHD: Cognitive function assessed by the test of attentional performance. PLoS One, 15(10), e0240810.
40.
SugimotoA.SuzukiY.YoshinagaK.OrimeN.HayashiT.EgawaJ.OnoS.SugaiT.SomeyaT. (2021). Influence of atomoxetine on relationship between ADHD symptoms and prefrontal cortex activity during task execution in adult patients. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 15, 755025.
41.
TakizawaR.FukudaM.KawasakiS.KasaiK.MimuraM.PuS.NodaT.NiwaS.OkazakiY. (2014). Neuroimaging-aided differential diagnosis of the depressive state. NeuroImage, 85 Pt1, 498–507.
42.
TakizawaR.KasaiK.KawakuboY.MarumoK.KawasakiS.YamasueH.FukudaM. (2008). Reduced frontopolar activation during verbal fluency task in schizophrenia: A multi-channel near-infrared spectroscopy study. Schizophrenia Research, 99(1-3), 250–262.
TomasiD.VolkowN. D.WangG. J.WangR.TelangF.CaparelliE. C.WongC.JayneM.FowlerJ. S. (2011). Methylphenidate enhances brain activation and deactivation responses to visual attention and working memory tasks in healthy controls. NeuroImage, 54(4), 3101–3110.
45.
UedaS.OtaT.IidaJ.YamamuroK.YoshinoH.KishimotoN.KishimotoT. (2018). Reduced prefrontal hemodynamic response in adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder as measured by near-infrared spectroscopy. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 72(6), 380–390.
46.
UstunB.AdlerL. A.RudinC.FaraoneS. V.SpencerT. J.BerglundP.GruberM. J.KesslerR. C. (2017). The World Health Organization adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder self-report screening scale for DSM-5. JAMA psychiatry, 74(5), 520–527.
47.
YamagataB.TakeiY.ItahashiT.PuS.HiranoJ.MimuraM.IwanamiA. (2017). Aberrant spatial and temporal prefrontal activation patterns in medication-naïve adults with ADHD. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 8, 274.
48.
YamashitaY.MakiA.ItoY.WatanabeE.MayanagiY.KoizumiH. (1996). Noninvasive near-infrared topography of human brain activity using intensity modulation spectroscopy. Optical Engineering, 35, 1046.
49.
ZimmermanM.MartinezJ. H.YoungD.ChelminskiI.DalrympleK. (2013). Severity classification on the Hamilton depression rating scale. Journal of Affective Disorders, 150(2), 384–388.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
