Prefrontal and frontostriatal structures mediate academic outcomes associated with ADHD symptoms

Howard Chiu; Sila Genc; Charles B. Malpas; Emma Sciberras; Jan M. Nicholson; Daryl Efron; Timothy J. Silk

Brain Disorders (Dec 2021)

Prefrontal and frontostriatal structures mediate academic outcomes associated with ADHD symptoms

Howard Chiu,
Sila Genc,
Charles B. Malpas,
Emma Sciberras,
Jan M. Nicholson,
Daryl Efron,
Timothy J. Silk

Affiliations

Howard Chiu: Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia; Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia
Sila Genc: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
Charles B. Malpas: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Clinical Outcomes Research Unit, Department of Medicine, Royal Melbourne Hospital, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
Emma Sciberras: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Geelong, Victoria 3125, Australia
Jan M. Nicholson: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Judith Lumley Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
Daryl Efron: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia
Timothy J. Silk: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia; Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Geelong, Victoria 3125, Australia; Corresponding author at: Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Geelong, Victoria 3125, Australia.

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 4
p. 100023

Abstract

Read online

Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have poor academic functioning compared to typically developing children, with executive dysfunction mediating the relationship between ADHD symptoms and academic outcomes. This study investigated whether differences in prefrontal and frontostriatal structures explain this mediating relationship. 132 children aged 9–11 years (mean 10.4 years) completed a MRI including structural and diffusion acquisitions. Cortical regions were parcellated using Freesurfer. Frontostriatal tracts were generated using constrained spherical deconvolution (CSD) tractography. Executive functioning was assessed using working memory, sustained attention and response inhibition tasks. Academic achievement was measured by direct assessment of reading and mathematics, teacher report of academic competence, and national standardized academic testing. Serial mediation analysis tested whether executive function and frontostriatal structures mediate the poorer academic functioning seen in ADHD. Symptom severity (predominantly inattention) was associated with poorer academic outcomes. Working memory partially mediated the relationship between symptoms and academic outcomes. In a serial mediation model, left DLPFC volume, right orbitofrontal volume, and left striatal structures to DLPFC tract volumes partially mediated academic outcome. This study suggests that variability in frontostriatal structures explain the mediating effect of cognitive performance on the relationship between ADHD symptomatology and academic outcomes.

Published in Brain Disorders

ISSN: 2666-4593 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry: Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system
Website: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/brain-disorders

About the journal

Abstract

Keywords