ADHD Evaluation and therapy in Milan in order to diagnose and treat attention and hyperactivity related disorders.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by two groups of symptoms, or psychopathological dimensions, defined as inattention and impulsivity/hyperactivity.
The inattention (or easy distractibility) is manifested above all by the lack of attention to detail and the inability to carry out the actions taken.
Children constantly appear distracted, as if they always have something else in mind, avoid performing activities that require attention to particulars or organizational skills, frequently lose significant objects, or forget important activities.
The impulsiveness of the Hyperactive Child Milan manifests itself as difficulties in organizing complex actions, with a tendency to change quickly from one activity to another and difficulty waiting for your turn in situations of play and/or group activity. Such impulsivity is generally associated with hyperactivity. They are children who appear “like moved by a moped”, they struggle to sit in their seats and have difficulty in respecting the rules, times and spaces of their peers.
All these symptoms are not caused by cognitive deficit (mental retardation), but by objective difficulties in self-control and planning ability.
The inability to stay alert and control impulses means that children with ADHD have a lower school yield and develop their cognitive abilities more difficultly. Frequently these children show little ability to use the norms of social coexistence, especially in those abilities that consist in capturing those non-verbal social indices that modulate interpersonal relationships.
This results in significant interference in the quality of the relationships between these children and the world around them. The problematic relationship with others, the difficulties of school, the constant reproaches on the part of the authorities, the sense of inadequacy to counter this with their own abilities cause these children to develop a sense of demoralization and anxiety, which further accentuates their difficulties.
Lo Studio offers, through a team of specialists of the Evolutionary Age (Child Neuropsychiatrist, Psychologists specialized in psychopathology of learning, pedagogist, Speech therapists), a multidisciplinary evaluation that includes:
DIAGNOSIS
When it is suspected that a hyperactive child in Milan may be suffering from attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity, it is necessary:
- Collect information from multiple sources (parents, teachers, educators), using semi-structured interviews and/or standardised questionnaires on different aspects of the child’s behaviour and social functioning (e.g. Conner’s Teacher, Rating Scale- Revised and Conner’s Parent Rating Scale);
- Conduct an interview (psychological examination) with the child to check for other associated disorders; Standardized child self-assessment scales (anxiety, depression, etc.) can be useful (e.g. Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children, MASC, 1997; Children Depression Inventory, CDI, Self-Administration Psychiatric Scales for Children and Adolescents SAFA, Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia, Present and Life-time version K-SADS-PL).
- Evaluate cognitive abilities and learning abilities; objectively assess attentive, task planning and self-control skills. Sometimes it can be useful to evaluate the possible presence of language disorders. It is always appropriate to measure the cognitive level of the subject with standardized tools (Raven Progressive Matrices or, better, WIPPSI, WISC-IV or WAIS-IV) and evaluate the writing, reading and comprehension skills of the text (differential diagnosis with specific learning disorders that can simulate, but also be associated with a attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity).
- Carry out the medical and neurological examination, assessing the presence of any associated pathologies and the effects of any other therapies in place.
THE TREATMENT
From the age of 6, psychostimulant drug therapy is effective.
The most effective non-pharmacological therapeutic strategies consist of:
– psychoeducational interventions of parent training
– counselling and training of teachers
– structuring of laboratories aimed at rehabilitation.
THE PROJECT’S OBJECTIVES:
– increase personal autonomy and self-esteem;
– decrease disruptive and inappropriate behaviour;
– improving school learning skills (quantity of knowledge, accuracy and completeness of learned notions, efficiency of study methods);
– improving interpersonal relationships with parents, siblings, teachers and peers;
– improve the social acceptability of the disorder and the quality of life of affected children/adolescents.
ADHD Evaluation and therapy in Milan
Contact us