Gene discovery offers promise of better diagnosis and treatment

As more public attention and concern focus on hyperactivity in children, new findings at UC Irvine may help answer questions about why it occurs and whether there are better ways of treating it.

The discovery of an abnormal gene associated with the condition known as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder advances the research in hopes of one day doing more to soothe the frustrations of suffering children, parents and teachers.

The cause or causes of hyperactivity remain a mystery as growing numbers of children are being medicated. It isn’t clear whether the problem is occurring more frequently or being diagnosed more through better detection methods or, in some cases, being diagnosed in error. Moreover, there is a continuing controversy over treatment. An estimated 2 million children in the United States suffer from hyperactivity, and nearly a million are being given Ritalin, a stimulating medication that manages to calm users. Critics deride it as a quick fix, dispensed too often as a matter of convenience--even in cases where children are simply being children or when what youngsters need is not drugs but more structure and better parenting in their lives.

The new research clearly will not solve contemporary debates over the psychological impact on children of such things as single-parent homes and two-paycheck households. But it does promise to aid in diagnosis.

The research also appears to further understanding of how Ritalin actually works. As a result, it may be possible to come up with a drug that does a better job of targeting the aberrant gene and not produce the problems associated with Ritalin.

The establishment of a genetic link will necessitate entering entirely new areas of inquiry. But such questions are welcome for their potential to shed light on children’s leading psychiatric disorder.