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Rebecca
Straughmatt Mesa Legend |
Attention deficit disorder:
Not just a child’s disease
Not just for children
Luisa Pawlak
Mesa Legend
More and more adults who feel
distracted, disorganized and fidgety are being urged to seek help
for Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD.
What was once thought to be a children’s disorder is now transcending
to every age group.
Some see the national ad campaign as a way to educate the public
about a little-known condition; others said pharmaceutical companies
are trying to convince members of the public that they have the
disorder to increase the demand for its new medication.
“We’re very concerned that folks have a disorder that
is impairing and limiting their life,” said Dr. Calvin Sumner.
“It affects many people, and it’s treatable.”
ADD is typically associated with youth, but health officials said
it is present among adults.
The neurobiological disorder, characterized by a person’s
inability to pay attention and concentrate, affects an estimated
2 to 4 percent of adults, according to the nonprofit group Children
and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder or CHADD.
According to the National Institutes of Health, one of the most
commonly diagnosed disorders in children, ADD affects 3 percent
to 5 percent of all kids.
Television and radio ads about adult ADD and the drug, Strattera,
are centered around screening questions.
They include ones such as “How often are you distracted by
activity or noise around you?” and “How often do you
feel restless or fidgety?”
Responses of “sometimes” to the questions on the company’s
Web site prompts a message that the symptoms may be consistent with
adult ADD and a visit to the doctor is recommended.
Sumner said, companies are working with doctors to help them understand
the disorder and to offer treatment to those who need it.
“Many people have lived with ADD all of their lives, and they
accept it as part of who they are,” Sumner said.
“They have no idea that the pattern of problems they have
may be related to a treatable disorder.”
In addition to the consumer marketing, companies aimed an ADD education
campaign at family physicians, who often know little about diagnosing
and treating adult ADD.
Sumner said he is concerned that general practitioners, who often
have just minutes with patients, will misdiagnose ADD.
“It is impossible to diagnose attention deficit disorder properly
(in minutes),” he said.
Many people in today’s hurried world may look like they have
ADD when they really don’t. “I would speculate that
55 percent of the population has what I call pseudo-ADD, sort of
a severe case of modern life. They’re going so fast, they’re
doing so much, they’re so saturated with information overload
that they look distracted, impulsive and restless,” Sumner
added.
An estimated 67 percent of children who have signs of ADD will have
symptoms as adults, according to CHADD.
Similar to kids with the disorder, adults can be treated with behavior
modification, medication or a combination of both.
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