Spotlight on ADHD and autism
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum conditions are examples of neuropsychiatric disabilities which can affect, for example, the ability to concentrate or to understand social codes. Scientists at Karolinska Institutet are constantly searching for ways to facilitate everyday life for people with a neuropsychiatric diagnosis and to explain the causes behind these conditions.
ADHD – a controversial diagnosis
ADHD – a controversial diagnosis
"Uh-oh, why did I do that?!" Researchers are trying to improve the lives of people diagnosed with ADHD.
Researchers try to break vicious circles
Researchers try to break vicious circles
Research shows that alcohol and substance abuse and criminal behaviour are overrepresented among sufferers of Adhd. Can a downward life spiral be arrested by the right treatment?
Focus on early detection
Focus on early detection
Researchers are slowly getting closer to achieving an understanding of the causes of autism. However, the research focusses just as much on the question of how to diagnose and care for today's autistic children as early as possible.
News in selection
Similar changes in the brains of patients with ADHD and emotional instability
Similar changes in the brains of patients with ADHD and emotional instability
Predrag Petrovic and his colleagues have found that the human brain exhibits similar changes in overlapping areas, in ADHD and emotional instability disorders. This means that the two types of conditions could be seen as related, and that attention should be paid to both during diagnosis.
Migration during pregnancy increases the risk
Migration during pregnancy increases the risk
"If the findings prove to be correct, this indicates that the occurrence of autism is linked with environmental factors, something connected to the migration process", says Cecilia Magnusson, Adjunct Professor at the Department of Public Health Sciences.
No association between celiac disease and autism
No association between celiac disease and autism
A registry study dismiss the long-debated association between celiac disease – also called gluten intolerance – and increased risk of autism spectrum disorders in children. The study was led from Karolinska Institutet and published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
Common variation genes behind the risk of autism
Common variation genes behind the risk of autism
One of the largest studies of its kind, has revealed that a large number of relatively common gene variations, each one having only a small effect on its own, may when combined increase the probability of developing autism. These gene variations may be inherited, or may occur for the first time in the affected individual.
More researchers in this area
Studying how genetic factors contribute
Studying how genetic factors contribute
Kristiina Tammimies research is about understanding how genetic factors contribute to the etiology of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), and how these factors translate into biological pathways affecting brain development.
Link between childhood asthma and adhd
Link between childhood asthma and adhd
Catarina Almqvist Malmros studies heritage and environment in connection with asthma. Children with asthma are at increased risk for, among other things, neuropsychiatric disorders such as ADHD.
Focusing on autism and ADHD in children
Focusing on autism and ADHD in children
Sven Bölte is a professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Science. For over 20 years, he has been studying neuropsychiatric disabilities in children, particularly ADHD and autism spectrum disorders.