Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional ADHD and QEEG

I am curious if anyone has ever had a QEEG report to help determine if their child has ADHD? I understand from our Dr. that their is no definitive test for this condition, but it can assist in making a diagnosis. The Dr. feels that my child's intelligence is helping to mask some of the typical symptoms/issues typical seen with ADHD. DS situation is a long story, but I'm curious if anyone else has found this test valuable? It is expensive and not covered by insurance.

Thank you for your help!

Never heard of it but I will be very interested to see what you find out!

ADHD- no such thing, how did they even come up with it. In my country if a child acts like he has "ADHD" it means that he is a very healthy and active child. Right after we moved here a doctor diognosed ADHD in me,my mom thought he was stupid. At first I thought maybe but it got wierd to things so,I felt silly Dont waist your money,this is all they want. Trust me I know a lot on that. Your child smart and active, be happy for him/her.
Good luck

P.s. if you need a way to calm down your child, for any reason. I can tell you how, without any medicine.

Hi, we have had ds9 assessed for this (and several other things) but this test you mention, QEEG, was not used.
Kristianna's comments are hopeful, however it might not be entirely a figment of the american establishment's imagination that adhd is a real condition. Perhaps more a function of the times than any one country's medical frame of mind. I was curious about the prevalence in the u.s. vs. other countries, I found this link/article, which does make it sound like it's not just an american issue. I very much wanted to believe ds9 did not have adhd, and in fact he does not, but I wanted to find out for sure and could not entirely discount some behaviors and comments from others - so we had the assessment done.
I think there are many parents on this board who have found a diagnosis of adhd extremely helpful as it has pointed them in the right direction for therapies, etc. I do hope you are able to find out what is up with your son, one way or the other (and always remember some great advice I've gotten here - even after the test/assessment results are 'in', your kid is still just the same kid!!!)

Hugs

Oops, almost forgot the link!

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1525089/

I agree chris1234 and no its not just an American issue. Some studies based on the prescribing of medication in Australia puts the figure at 11.2% here. There has certainly been a fair amount of debate in the media ranging from it not existing to it being over diagnosed. At the end of the day there are most likely children that fit the symptoms and therefore the diagnosis which as you say is helpful in pointing parents in the right direction.

ps, if you are going in for 1 expensive test that only looks at adhd, I am not sure I'd go along with that (sometimes if you only look at 1 thing, you find that 1 thing!)
What we had done for our son was called a psycho-educational evaluation. It included iq and assessment tests, screening for mood disorders (anxiety/depression), screening for adhd, screening for learning disabilities. Our dr. has a PhD in Neuropsychology, which is what is best for administering all these tests and assessments...because we were attempting to screen for a learning disability, our insurance did pay for about 1/2 of everything.
The doc gave us a very complete assessment write up, which I think was very helpful in having continuing discussions with the school about ways to accommodate the issues which were identified for our ds9.

Well Kristianna. You have certainly demonstrated your ignorance. ADHD/ADD do in fact exist and has been medically proven. It is a neurological issue and is caused by a Beta/Theta brainwave inbalance. It would be a good idea for you to learn more about this disorder before you start posting responses like this.

There are two reasons for my hashness in this reply. Firstly, because your post is disrespectful and an insult to people like myself who have been fighting with this disorder all their lives. And secondly, because you are providing an uneducated response to an important topic that could be misguiding those individuals who are reading these posts.

In the future, please take the time to research something before you respond.

Many thanks,
Tim

It's fine to disagree with her opinion on the matter. I do! But there's no reason to be nasty about it. I understand that you've taken the issue personally, but that's still no reason to lash out.

It is important to many of us here that this forum remain polite. It's possible to disagree--to disagree vehemently, even--and not to attack someone in an ad hominem attack. If her ideas are wrong, offer evidence that they are wrong. You will persuade people. Don't attack her.

I understand where Kristiana is coming from, though I'm not sure I would have tackled this the same way. I took my children, one of which is ADHD and one who has been diagnosed with Aspeger's to El Salvador. We stayed at an uncle's house who seemed absolutely astounded that either of my healthy children had been diagnosed with anything. He was amazing at redirecting the children and getting my Aspeger's child to look at things in different ways. I could see why he thought my chidren were normal. He knew how to handle them.

I don't think the issue is that ADHD does not exist, but that a child with mild ADHD would not be considered out of the norm. The population and the schools are comfortable with the idea that some children are more active than others, or that children process sensory experiences differently and adapt to dealing with that child in that manner. I also think it's difficult to really see this difference unless you actually go and stay in another country in a position where you can witness this first hand.

If the umbrella of what is 'normal' is spread wider, then things that we consider 'ouside the norm' would not longer fall outside of it.

There are several other tests that would compliment QEEG. TOVA is one of them and is quite accurate. Among other things QEEG will determine if your child has a Theta/Beta inbalance. More than 50% of children with ADHD/ADD have this slow wave disorder.
As for your son's intelligence I am surprised that your doctor made that comment. Many ADD children and adults have a higher level of intelligence or some othr gift so it should provide another clue if nothing else. I hope that you are having your son tested by a professional that specializes in this disorder. As well, I would suggest getting a couple opinions.
Hope this helps.