ADHD Diagnosis
Diagnosing ADHD in adults can be trickier than diagnosing children. A clinical interview with an ADHD expert is the first step to a good diagnosis.
Bring any medical or academic records to your appointment. You can also bring questionnaires or rating scales that provide details on your symptoms.
Signs and symptoms
A doctor will conduct a physical examination and interview you to determine whether ADHD is present. The evaluator may inquire about a person's childhood and family history and utilize checklists to note symptoms. The evaluator may also review the person's academic and work documents, and may want to speak with teachers or others who are close to 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 are that the individual must have experienced multiple symptoms for at least six months and occur in a variety of settings like at school and at home. The examiner will also be looking for other conditions that could trigger similar symptoms, for example anxiety, depression, or a thyroid condition.
Adults will be assessed to determine the severity of symptoms and their impact on work or social life. The evaluator will also ask what the person's feelings are about their symptoms and how they impact daily life.
Many people with ADHD cannot remember when their problems began. A specialist may interview someone who is familiar with the person, like their spouse, sibling or parent for an adult or a teacher parent of the child. The examiner can use checklists to examine adults as well as a list of behaviors for children.
Contrary to previous diagnostic guidelines, an adult cannot be diagnosed with ADHD until symptoms are present before the age of 12. This change is intended to protect people who suffered from ADHD as children from being misdiagnosed as having other disorders, such as anxiety or depression.
book adhd assessment
If you suspect that you or your child is suffering from ADHD, the first step is to locate an expert who can perform an exhaustive evaluation. Contact your doctor or an experienced local mental health professional for recommendations, or look in the phone book under "psychiatry" or "psychology." You can also contact an adult ADHD support group, since many of them have worked with local specialists who are able to provide recommendations.
During the ADHD diagnostic assessment, a healthcare professional will look over the patient's medical and family history. They will ask what the symptoms hinder functioning in different settings, such as at home, at work, or in relationships. It is crucial to determine the severity of the symptoms because the APA's diagnostic guidelines for ADHD state that the symptoms must cause significant impairment in order to be diagnosed.
The healthcare professional will talk to the patient, but may request details from the patient's parents or siblings as well as friends who are familiar with him. Some professionals will have people fill out questionnaires or rating scales, which include ADHD symptom checklists and standardized behavior ratings. Teachers and other caregivers can be valuable sources of information too.
The APA's Diagnostic Guidelines state that symptoms should be frequent and impact performance. This is crucial because other disorders like mood disorders and learning disabilities may be similar to ADHD (Austerman 2015). Additionally, a medical exam may be conducted to determine other possible causes for the symptoms, such as thyroid issues, vision or hearing issues or the use of certain drugs, such as stimulants or sedatives.
Family History
In some instances there is an ancestor's history of ADHD is a major element in determining if you have the diagnosis. It is highly inherited and a review of the patient and their relatives' histories can aid in determining if there's any pattern of inheritance in the family.
It is important that providers get a complete picture about the symptoms of their patients, including whether or not they are present in work, school or in social settings. A healthcare professional must also consider the degree to which the patient's symptoms affect their daily functioning. This is a better measure than merely counting symptoms or looking at the IQ of patients.
A doctor may interview teens or children, as well as the parents. In many instances, a pediatrician or psychiatrist specializes in the evaluation and treatment of ADHD. A mental health professional with extensive experience in ADHD is required to conduct an in-depth interview for adults.
A thorough evaluation includes a physical examination which can help determine certain conditions that can cause symptoms similar to ADHD. A complete medical history is also gathered. For children, this could include previous medical and school records as well as a psychological evaluation by a school counselor or psychologist. For adults the old school records are often useful in establishing if symptoms started in the early years of life.
In the case of diagnosing adults in particular, it is crucial to look at how the symptoms impact everyday functioning. A thorough psychiatric exam may also be necessary with regard to the use of questionnaires and rating scales by the patient and his or her caregivers, a medical interview and referral for a medical exam. Adults may also undergo a neuropsychological or psychometric assessment to determine the relationship between their symptoms and learning disorders.
Interviews
A provider will interview you or your child regarding their problems at home, school and in the community. The provider will ask about your or child's medical personal, family, and medical history, and will review any records that you may bring, such as old school report cards. This information will help the doctor decide if you or your child is eligible to take a test to diagnose 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 the course of six months, and cover both at home and in school. The ratings should be provided by people who know your child or you well, including teachers, coaches, religious leaders, scouts and parents.
Children and adults who are diagnosed with ADHD have symptoms that are debilitating and can hinder their daily functioning whether at work, school, or play. The signs must be evident in the early years of childhood, typically before age 12. They aren't caused by a mental health issue.
Psychometric and neuropsychological tests that measure IQ, brain function, and cognitive functioning can enhance the sensitivity and specificity of ADHD assessments. They should be utilized alongside a clinician's interview and rating scales as part of a comprehensive assessment plan. These tests could include the use of a standardized questionnaire, such as the ADHD Diagnostic Interview for Adults (DIVA), or a computer-based adaptive testing method that measures the speed of response short-term memory, executive functions. In the near future, digital technology like virtual reality and head sensors that monitor head movements for continuous performance tests, could help improve the ecological validity by allowing people to be immersed into their natural environment instead of sitting in a clinic.
Tests
If your physician or mental health professional suspects ADHD the doctor might recommend you to an ADHD specialist. A complete evaluation will include an in-depth interview, information from other sources such as your spouse or significant others, and standardized behavior ratings scales for ADHD. Based on the clinical findings the evaluator might also order tests to screen for other conditions that could have an impact on your symptoms, including depression, learning disabilities, or a medical illness.
To conduct an accurate ADHD evaluation, the assessor must determine if the symptoms significantly impact your daily life and function. The impairment can occur in many different settings, like at home, at work, in school, or with your social interactions. The examiner should inquire about what your symptoms have affected your life in each of these settings. This will enable the evaluator to establish an assessment and formulate treatment suggestions.
In addition to the symptom ratings, a complete assessment typically includes one or more performance tests that are standard for ADHD. These tests are built on research that compares the behavior of those with ADHD and those who don't. These instruments improve on the limitations of a standard clinical interview because they focus more on specific behavior rather than an individual's overall performance. These measures can help evaluaters determine if a person is lying or trying to cheat on a test. This problem has been recognized in the field for many years.
In addition to the standardized test and the symptom rating scales and symptom rating scales, a thorough ADHD assessment should include brain scans or other imaging techniques for the brain. These tests aren't used in clinical settings due to the fact that they are costly and expose patients to radioactive ionization.