High IQ May “Mask” the Diagnosis of ADHD by Compensating for Deficits in Executive Functions in Treatment-Naïve Adults With ADHD

Tipo
Artigo
Data de publicação
2017
Periódico
Journal of Attention Disorders
Citações (Scopus)
37
Autores
Milioni A.L.V.
Chaim T.M.
Cavallet M.
de Oliveira N.M.
Annes M.
dos Santos B.
Louza M.
da Silva M.A.
Miguel C.S.
Serpa M.H.
Zanetti M.V.
Busatto G.
Cunha P.J.
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Resumo
© 2014, © The Author(s) 2014.Objective: To evaluate and compare the performance of adults with ADHD with high and standard IQ in executive functions (EF) tasks. Method: We investigated the neuropsychological performance of 51 adults with ADHD, compared with 33 healthy controls (HC) while performing a wide battery of neuropsychological tests that measure executive functioning. Adults with clinical diagnosis of ADHD were divided into two groups according to their IQ level (IQ ≥ 110—ADHD group with more elevated IQ, and IQ < 110—ADHD group with standard IQ). Results: The ADHD group with standard IQ presented a worse executive functioning compared with the HC group in the following measures: Stroop 2 (p =.000) and 3 (p =.000), Trail Making Test (TMT) B (p =.005), Wisconsin Card-Sorting Test (WCST)—perseverative errors (p =.022) and failures to maintain set (p =.020), Continuous Performance Test (CPT)—omission errors (p =.005) and commission errors (p =.000), and Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB)—conceptualization (p =.016). The ADHD group with more elevated IQ presented only impairments in the CPT—commission errors (p =.019) when compared with the control group. Conclusion: Adults with ADHD and more elevated IQ show less evidence of executive functioning deficits compared with those with ADHD and standard IQ, suggesting that a higher degree of intellectual efficiency may compensate deficits in executive functions, leading to problems in establishing a precise clinical diagnosis.
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Assuntos Scopus
Adult , Analysis of Variance , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity , Cognition , Executive Function , Female , Humans , Inhibition (Psychology) , Intelligence , Intelligence Tests , Male , Neuropsychological Tests , Young Adult
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