Adult ADHD: Overcoming The Motivation Deficit
A study lead by Nora Volkow, a neuroimaging research collaborator at the Brookhaven National Laboratory and Director at the National Institute on Drug Abuse, showed pioneering evidence that patients with ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, have lower levels of dopamine in the areas of the brain responsible for motivation and reward.
A PET scan, also known as positron emission tomography, was utilized to measure dopamine levels of two specific markers – receptors and transporters – in each of the 97 participants. The study was broken into two groups: 44 healthy adults and 53 adult ADHD sufferers who had not undergone any previous treatment.
Dopamine receptors are important in the propagation of the reward signal, while dopamine transporters are responsible for the uptake and recycling of dopamine excess after the reward signal was sent.
While undergoing PET scans, study participants received injections of a radioactive compound called a radiotracer. The compound was designed to bind to and measure specific targets that enabled researchers to measure and document the locations and concentrations of dopamine transporters and receptors.
The findings from the study clearly emphasized that ADHD patients have lower amounts of dopamine receptors and dopamine transporters in some areas of the brain, particularly in the midbrain and the accumbens, which are responsible for reward and motivation processes. The researchers also found that the measurements of the markers correlated with the symptoms of ADHD, like inattention.
The research showed, according to Volkow, that lower amounts of dopamine transporters and receptors play specific roles in the patients’ decreased attention and may underlie ADHD sufferers’ reactions to reward. She also added that results from the study supported the use of stimulants which increases dopamine levels in the brain thus, increasing the attention level of ADHD patients to mental tasks presented to them.
Learn more about ADHD treatment. Head over to Brain Pages the brain focused directory where you can find help, hope and community.