ADHD: current concepts on etiology, pathophysiology, and neurobiology

As cognitive neuroscience and developmental neurobiology advance, it is important that these advances be applied to the study of children and childhood disorders. Basic and pathophysiologic studies of the many forms of ADHD and possible causes, and studies of genes and gene environment interactions, are critical for an adequate understanding of this heterogeneous disorder. To date, most studies seem to have implicitly assumed that ADHD was immutable and all inborn, perhaps in part because of the high heritabilities. It is hoped that the next generation of research and researchers will tackle these formidable challenges, undertake the necessary longitudinal studies of early attention development and regulation, and link these studies to basic neuroscience research in animal models using the new tools available through molecular genetics and neuroimaging.