Handwriting assessment to distinguish comorbid learning difficulties from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Chinese adolescents: A case-control study.

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Handwriting assessment to distinguish comorbid learning difficulties from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Chinese adolescents: A case-control study.

Int J Methods Psychiatr Res. 2018 May 15;:e1718

Authors: Li-Tsang CWP, Li TMH, Lau MSW, Ho CHY, Leung HWH

Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning difficulties (LDs) are proposed as 2 overlapping disorders. The objective of this study was to investigate the handwriting performance in ADHD and comorbid ADHD-LD adolescents.
METHODS: The study examined the Chinese and English handwriting performance and sensorimotor skills of 32 ADHD, 12 ADHD-LD, and their matched controls.
RESULTS: Participants with ADHD had comparable writing time and speed, but the readability was lower than their controls. Participants with ADHD-LD had lower writing speeds in both Chinese and English handwriting than their controls. The ADHD and ADHD-LD groups also showed larger variations in either speed or pen pressure than their controls. Chinese handwriting assessment effectively classified ADHD and ADHD-LD with good sensitivity and positive predictive value.
CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians should be aware of the fundamental difference between the 2 disorders and make good use of handwriting assessment as a reference to deliver effective therapies and trainings.

PMID: 29761583 [PubMed – as supplied by publisher]

via https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29761583?dopt=Abstract