Is behavioral intervention an alternative medicine in childhood/adolescent ADHD?

Abstract

Objectives: The objective of this project is to examine the effectiveness of non-pharmacological intervention - behavioral therapy for ADHD children so as to determine whether this is as an alternative medical therapy for ADHD children. Background: Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most common neurobehavioral disease in child. Symptoms can continue through adolescence and adulthood. Children suffering from ADHD disorders have symptoms of hyperactivity, failure to concentrate on activities and poor behavioral control. There are three sub-types of ADHD disorder, namely; hyperactive dominant type, inattentive dominant type and combined type. There are increasing numbers of children who are referred to child psychiatrists with an ADHD diagnosis internationally. In Hong Kong, ADHD contributes the majority of patients seen in child psychiatric clinics. The prevalence rate of ADHD in Hong Kong is 6.1% in primary school students and represents a similar rate to that reported worldwide. Methods: A literature search was conducted via Medline, PubMed and Google, to find relevant studies reviewing the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for ADHD children. Result: Nine articles were identified that matched the inclusion criteria for this review. These studies concern behavioral interventions for ADHD children and include a range of behavioral and cognitive behavioral approaches. Two of these nine articles provided evidence that for pre-school children aged up to six years old, parent-training programs were effective in improving ADHD symptoms. Six of these nine articles provided evidence that for school aged children providing mixed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Social Skills Training (SST) along with parallel group sessions for parents are beneficial to ADHD children. One of these nine articles provided evidence that CBT is beneficial in adopting appropriate coping skills in ADHD children. Conclusions: In views of the concerns about use of drug therapy for ADHD, behavioral intervention appears to be feasible and potentially effective as an alternative medicine for children with ADHD.