Overview
- On Feb. 25, a team led by Qiyong Gong at Sichuan University reported using an algorithm to analyze CT-derived brain-surface maps from children in Chinese and U.S. clinics.
- The analysis yielded four well-separated clusters, with three containing scans from children with ADHD and a fourth comprising controls.
- The three ADHD groups aligned with differing symptom profiles, including a broadly severe form, a predominantly hyperactive/impulsive form, and a primarily inattentive form.
- Brain differences varied by group, spanning widespread frontal-lobe and pallidum changes, alterations in pallidum–cingulate circuits, and effects centered on a major cerebral gyrus.
- The pretrained model reproduced the clusters on an independent dataset (554 with ADHD, 123 without); authors call for replication and propose receptor-density differences as a possible mechanism, while separate reports show adult diagnoses have surged and access to care remains limited.