A potential diagnostic blood test for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children, adolescents, and adults remains controversial. Dramatic growth in the diagnosis of this disorder in both young people and adults has focused criticism on the subjective nature of the diagnostic procedure. A new blood test that measures blood cell membrane potential (expressed as membrane potential ratio [MPR(™)]) has been recently developed. The current study was performed to explore the potential utility of this blood test in diagnosis of ADHD. Consecutive outpatient children (n = 89), adolescents (n = 18), and adults (n = 89) diagnosed with ADHD, or not (n = 60, 17, and 92, respectively), provided sample in which the blood test was performed. ADHD subjects were relatively depolarized with an MPR(™) of 0.804 ± 0.0381, compared to non-ADHD subjects, 0.684 ± 0.0260 (P < 0.05). The sensitivity is between 0.75 and 0.9, depending on the definition used, and the specificity is 0.75. MPR(™) appears to be a viable potential diagnostic tool for ADHD. Larger studies utilizing standardized diagnostic procedures, taking into account medications and comorbidity, and exploring variables such as age and gender are warranted.