[The neuroanatomy of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder]

Neuroimaging techniques are increasingly being applied to the study of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This review focuses on magnetic resonance imaging studies of the brain anatomy of ADHD, which have now been conducted for over a decade. Most studies have focused on frontal striatal regions and have tended to find smaller volumes in children with ADHD relative to controls. Recently published analyses with the largest sample of patients and controls found that ADHD is associated with a statistically significant global reduction in brain volume in both boys and girls of 3 4%, which is confirmed in a meta analysis of this global measure. Specific regional differences have been found in many studies in the basal ganglia with the most prominent differences being found in the cerebellum.