Attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder and fluctuating asymmetry in another college sample

Abstract

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) represents a developmental lag that may be reflected in fluctuating asymmetry (FA), i.e., differences from perfect symmetry in traits that display bilateral symmetry. Burton et al. (2003 Am. J. Hum. Biol. 15:601-619) found a statistical trend for FA to increase (as dermatoglyphic index or as total index) as the behavioral measure for AD/HDness (Rasch logit values derived from the Wender Utah Rating Scale, or WURS) increased in males but not in females. The objective here was to do a similar study in an independently collected sample of college students (n = 222; 61 male, 161 female) not selected for AD/HD, looking at FA vs. symptoms for AD/HD based on Rasch versions of responses to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM IV) (Barkley and Murphy 1998 Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, New York: Guilford Press, p. 95-96) and the more comparable shortened WURS. FAs were lowest for body and ear height, and highest for eye width and nose width, and ranged from 0.01 +/- 0.001 (mean +/- SE) for foot and ankle widths to 0.13 +/- 0.01 in eye and nose widths for both sexes; the sexes did not differ significantly. Males displayed higher AD/HD symptom rates overall. There was a significant correlation between body FA and the WURS measure in females after Bonferroni correction (P = 0.002, r(2) = 0.058). Thus, AD/HD symptoms levels increased with an increase in body FA in female college students not selected for AD/HD.

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and digit ratios in a college sample

“…The short-form WURS and ADHD symptom lists derived from DSM were subjected to Rasch rating-scale analyses. (Results of these analyses were reported previously for the Stevenson et al, 2006). None of the items for the scales as total symptom lists (ADHD/Combined subtype), or as subdivided symptom lists in the case of the DSM-derived odd (ADHD/Inattentive) vs. even (ADHD/ Hyperactive-Impulsive) symptom lists, were found to have statistically significant misfits.…”

“…Thus, Cornish et al (2005) argued that genetic influences on ADHD symptoms operate as a QTL on the entire human population, and not just individuals diagnosed with ADHD. Thus, one ought to be able to study subclinical ADHD symptoms relative to other factors in a ''normal'' population sample, and a number of studies have documented the presence of ADHD symptoms in college students (e.g., Burton et al, 2003;Fossati et al, 2001;Lara-Muñ oz et al, 1998;Richards et al, 1999;Smith and Johnson, 1998;Stevenson et al, 2006;Turnock et al, 1998;Weyandt et al, 1995). The objective here is to examine the relationship between measures of FLRs (excluding the thumb) and self-reported, subclinical ADHD symptoms reflecting the three subcategories of ADHD in a sample of Europeandescent college students (135 female, 52 male) not selected for ADHD.…”

Environmentally Enriched Male Mink Gain More Copulations than Stereotypic, Barren-Reared Competitors

“…As outlined in the Introduction, humans suffering from psychiatric or developmental disorders characterised by stereotypic behaviour (e.g. schizophrenia; autism) often have problematic or no sexual relationships [128],[129],[130] because they are socially odd [131]: behaviourally and conversationally inflexible, and poor at responding appropriately to others' actions, words or facial expressions. Furthermore, perseveration (inappropriate response repetition) is elevated, not just in these stereotypic humans, but in all stereotypic captive animal species tested to date - including two other Carnivora [132],[133] as well as mink [71],[83].…”

Magnetic resonance microscopy-based analyses of the neuroanatomical effects of gestational day 9 ethanol exposure in mice

“…In this regard, a recent human study based on high-resolution laser facial scanning and morphometric analysis software has shown a shift of some midline facial features to the right while landmarks around the eye are shifted to the left with overall facial asymmetry (Jackson and Hussain, 1990; Klingenberg, et al, 2010). Interestingly, asymmetric dysmorphology is common in other developmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorders (ASD), schizophrenia, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and CHARGE syndrome (Davenport, et al, 1986; Gourion, et al, 2004; Hammond, et al, 2008; Herbert, et al, 2005; Riva, et al, 2011; Shashi, et al, 2004; Shaw, et al, 2009; Stevenson, et al, 2006). Exploration of the cellular and molecular basis for these asymmetries is expected to lead to a better understanding of ethanol’s teratogenic mechanisms and of the myriad gene/environment interactions that contribute to FASD.…”