ADHD Diagnosis
Finding out if you have ADHD in adults can be trickier than diagnosing ADHD in children. An interview with a clinical ADHD expert is the first step in obtaining getting a reliable diagnosis.
Bring any medical or academic records with you to your appointment. It's also helpful to bring ratings scales and interviews which can provide details regarding your symptoms.
Symptoms
A thorough ADHD diagnosis involves a physical exam and a discussion with a doctor. The examiner may ask questions about the person's family history and childhood and utilize checklists to record symptoms. The evaluator may also review the person's work and school records, and may also want to speak with teachers or others who spend time with them.
The evaluator will use the official lists of symptoms for inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity to determine whether the person meets diagnostic criteria. The criteria include that the person has been suffering from multiple symptoms for at least six months and that they occur in a variety of settings, like at school or at home. The evaluator can also look for other conditions which can cause similar symptoms such as depression or anxiety.
Adults will be evaluated to determine the severity of symptoms and their impact on social or work life. The evaluation will also inquire how the individual feels about the symptoms and how much they impact daily life.
Many people with ADHD are unable to remember the time when their issues began. This is why a specialist will usually interview someone who knows the person well, such as siblings or spouses for an adult, or an educator or parent for the child. The examiner might use checklists to assess adults as well as a list of the behaviors that children exhibit.
Unlike in the past, current diagnostic guidelines indicate that an adult shouldn't be diagnosed with ADHD in the event that symptoms appeared before age 12. This change is designed to avoid people suffering from ADHD who were diagnosed as children from being mistakenly diagnosed with other disorders, like depression and anxiety.
Medical Histories
If you suspect that your or your child suffers from ADHD the first step is to locate an expert who can conduct a thorough assessment. Contact your doctor or an area mental health expert for recommendations, or look in the phone book for "psychiatry" or "psychology." You can also contact an adult ADHD support group, since they may have worked with local specialists who can provide referrals.
During like it , a healthcare specialist will examine the patient's medical and family history. They will ask about the effects of the symptoms on functioning in different environments, like at work, home, or in relationships. It is crucial to determine how severe the symptoms are, as the APA's diagnostic guidelines for ADHD note that the symptoms must result in significant impairment to be diagnosed.
The healthcare professional will talk to the patient, but they may also ask for information from parents or siblings as well as friends who are familiar with him. Some professionals ask people to fill out questionnaires or scales. They may also ask for ADHD symptom checklists and rating of behavior. Teachers and other caregivers can be useful sources of information too.
The APA's Diagnostic Guidelines state that symptoms must be frequent and impact performance. This is vital, as other conditions such as mood disorders or learning disabilities can be similar to ADHD (Austerman 2015). A medical exam may also be performed to determine if there are any other possible causes of the symptoms. These could include thyroid issues, vision or hearing issues, or prescription medications like stimulants and sedatives.
Family History
In certain cases, a history of ADHD in the family could be a major factor determining the diagnosis. It is highly genetically inherited, and a look at the patient's and their relatives' histories will aid in determining if there is any pattern of inheritance in the family.
It is important for providers to get a complete picture of the patient's symptoms regardless of whether they occur at school, work, or in social situations. A provider should also determine the extent to which symptoms affect the person's everyday functioning. This is a more reliable method than simply examining symptom counts or examining the patient's intelligence.
For teens and children, a doctor can interview the child or teen and their parents. In many cases, a pediatrician psychiatrist specializes in the evaluation and treatment of ADHD. For adults, a detailed interview is required by a mental health professional who has extensive knowledge of ADHD and takes the time to carefully evaluate each patient's presentation.
A thorough evaluation typically includes a physical examination, which can rule out certain medical conditions that could cause similar symptoms to ADHD. A complete medical record is also taken. This can include medical and school records, as well as a psychologist or school counselor's psychological evaluation. For adults the old school records are often helpful in determining whether symptoms began in childhood.
If you are diagnosing an adult in particular, it is crucial to look at how the symptoms impact daily functioning. A thorough psychiatric examination may also be necessary, involving rating scales and questionnaires by the patient and their caregivers, a medical interview and a referral to medical examination. Adults may also undergo a neuropsychological or psychometric assessment to determine the connection between their symptoms and learning disorders.
Interviews
A professional will talk to you or your child about their problems at home, school and in the community. The provider will ask about your child's medical, family, and personal history, and will also review any records you have, like old school report cards. This information will help the doctor to determine if you or your child needs to undergo an assessment for ADHD.
Your provider will use rating scales to identify if you or your child meets criteria for ADHD, including six established symptoms in the two main categories of the disorder -- inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity. These ratings are usually taken over a period of six months, which includes both school and home. The ratings must be done by people who are familiar with your your child's behavior like teachers, religious and scout leaders, coaches and parents.
Children and adults diagnosed with ADHD are likely to exhibit symptoms that are debilitating and affect their daily activities at school, work, or play. The symptoms should manifest in the early years of the early years of childhood, usually before the age of 12. They can't be caused by another mental health issue.
The sensitivity and specificity in ADHD assessments can be enhanced through the use of psychometric and neuropsychological tests that assess IQ and cognitive functioning. However, they should only be utilized as part of an assessment process that includes a clinician interview and rating scales. These assessments could include the administration a standardized test like the ADHD Diagnostic Interview for Adults or a computerized testing method that tests executive functions, short-term memories and speed of response. In the future the use of digital technology like virtual reality for continuous performance tests as well as head movement sensors may help to improve ecological validity of these ADHD assessment tools by giving the person being assessed to be immersed in their environment rather than sitting in an office for clinical evaluation.
Tests
Your GP or a mental health professional may refer you to specialists if he/she they suspect ADHD. A complete evaluation will include an extensive interview, data from other sources, such as your spouse or significant others and the standardized scales of behavior ratings for ADHD. The evaluator will conduct tests based on the clinical impression to screen for conditions that could be causing your symptoms. These could include depression as well as learning disabilities or a medical condition.
A thorough ADHD evaluation is required by the evaluator to determine if your symptoms are significantly affecting your functioning and life. The impairment can occur in a variety of environments, including your workplace, home, school and social relationships. The evaluator should ask what the impact of your condition has been on you in each situation. This will allow the evaluator make an assessment and formulate treatment recommendations.
A comprehensive assessment will comprise in addition to rating of symptoms and standardized tests for performance for ADHD. These testing instruments are based on research comparing the behavior of those with ADHD to those who do not. They improve upon the limitations of an interview with a clinician by focusing on specific behaviors rather than a person's general performance. These measures can aid in identifying when the person is not being honest or trying to cheat on the test which has been identified for many years in the field of neuropsychological testing.
In addition to the standardized test and the symptom rating scales as well as the symptom rating scales, an extensive ADHD assessment should include brain scans and other neurological imaging procedures. These tests are not utilized in clinical settings because they are costly and expose patients to radioactivity ionizing.