It Takes Time: Vigilance and Sustained Attention Assessment in Adults with ADHD

Anselm B.M. Fuermaier; Lara Tucha; Nana Guo; Christian Mette; Bernhard W. Müller; Norbert Scherbaum; Oliver Tucha

doi:10.3390/ijerph19095216

It Takes Time: Vigilance and Sustained Attention Assessment in Adults with ADHD

Anselm B.M. Fuermaier^*, Lara Tucha, Nana Guo, Christian Mette, Bernhard W. Müller, Norbert Scherbaum, Oliver Tucha

^*Corresponding author for this work

Clinical Neuropsychology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

13 Citations (Scopus)

199 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Objectives: The present study compares the utility of eight different tests of vigilance and sustained attention in the neuropsychological examination of adults with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Methods: Thirty-one adults diagnosed with ADHD performed eight tests for vigilance and sustained attention, spread over three assessment days.

Results: Adults with ADHD showed cognitive impairments in most tests and test variables, even though their sensitivity differed greatly. No specific type of test variable stands out to be the most sensitive, and no evidence for a differential deterioration of performance over time was observed.

Conclusion: This study underscores the role of vigilance and sustained attention tests in the assessment of adult ADHD. It is further concluded that summary scores over the entire test duration are sufficient, but that all variables of a test should be considered. Finally, we hypothesize that reassessment on a different day may benefit a more accurate clinical assessment of adults with ADHD, in order to adequately take intraindividual fluctuations and limitations regarding test reliability into account.

Original language	English
Article number	5216
Number of pages	17
Journal	International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Volume	19
Issue number	9
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19095216
Publication status	Published - 1-May-2022

Keywords

adult ADHD
impairment
neuropsychology
sustained attention
vigilance

Access to Document

10.3390/ijerph19095216Licence: CC BY

It Takes TimeFinal publisher's version, 1.25 MBLicence: CC BY

Handle.net

Persistent link

Cite this

@article{f3a2caeccfef49fd8a45870b10531eb5,

title = "It Takes Time: Vigilance and Sustained Attention Assessment in Adults with ADHD",

abstract = "Objectives: The present study compares the utility of eight different tests of vigilance and sustained attention in the neuropsychological examination of adults with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Methods: Thirty-one adults diagnosed with ADHD performed eight tests for vigilance and sustained attention, spread over three assessment days.Results: Adults with ADHD showed cognitive impairments in most tests and test variables, even though their sensitivity differed greatly. No specific type of test variable stands out to be the most sensitive, and no evidence for a differential deterioration of performance over time was observed.Conclusion: This study underscores the role of vigilance and sustained attention tests in the assessment of adult ADHD. It is further concluded that summary scores over the entire test duration are sufficient, but that all variables of a test should be considered. Finally, we hypothesize that reassessment on a different day may benefit a more accurate clinical assessment of adults with ADHD, in order to adequately take intraindividual fluctuations and limitations regarding test reliability into account.",

keywords = "adult ADHD, impairment, neuropsychology, sustained attention, vigilance",

author = "Fuermaier, {Anselm B.M.} and Lara Tucha and Nana Guo and Christian Mette and M{\"u}ller, {Bernhard W.} and Norbert Scherbaum and Oliver Tucha",

note = "Funding Information: Funding: This project was supported by the Faculty Support Grant of the Faculty Behavioural and Social Sciences (BSS) of the University of Groningen. This research was also supported by a China Scholarship Council (CSC) scholarship to NG., grant number 201906990030. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.",

year = "2022",

month = may,

day = "1",

doi = "10.3390/ijerph19095216",

language = "English",

volume = "19",

journal = "International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health",

issn = "1661-7827",

publisher = "MDPI AG",

number = "9",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - It Takes Time

T2 - Vigilance and Sustained Attention Assessment in Adults with ADHD

AU - Fuermaier, Anselm B.M.

AU - Tucha, Lara

AU - Guo, Nana

AU - Mette, Christian

AU - Müller, Bernhard W.

AU - Scherbaum, Norbert

AU - Tucha, Oliver

N1 - Funding Information: Funding: This project was supported by the Faculty Support Grant of the Faculty Behavioural and Social Sciences (BSS) of the University of Groningen. This research was also supported by a China Scholarship Council (CSC) scholarship to NG., grant number 201906990030. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

PY - 2022/5/1

Y1 - 2022/5/1

N2 - Objectives: The present study compares the utility of eight different tests of vigilance and sustained attention in the neuropsychological examination of adults with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Methods: Thirty-one adults diagnosed with ADHD performed eight tests for vigilance and sustained attention, spread over three assessment days.Results: Adults with ADHD showed cognitive impairments in most tests and test variables, even though their sensitivity differed greatly. No specific type of test variable stands out to be the most sensitive, and no evidence for a differential deterioration of performance over time was observed.Conclusion: This study underscores the role of vigilance and sustained attention tests in the assessment of adult ADHD. It is further concluded that summary scores over the entire test duration are sufficient, but that all variables of a test should be considered. Finally, we hypothesize that reassessment on a different day may benefit a more accurate clinical assessment of adults with ADHD, in order to adequately take intraindividual fluctuations and limitations regarding test reliability into account.

AB - Objectives: The present study compares the utility of eight different tests of vigilance and sustained attention in the neuropsychological examination of adults with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Methods: Thirty-one adults diagnosed with ADHD performed eight tests for vigilance and sustained attention, spread over three assessment days.Results: Adults with ADHD showed cognitive impairments in most tests and test variables, even though their sensitivity differed greatly. No specific type of test variable stands out to be the most sensitive, and no evidence for a differential deterioration of performance over time was observed.Conclusion: This study underscores the role of vigilance and sustained attention tests in the assessment of adult ADHD. It is further concluded that summary scores over the entire test duration are sufficient, but that all variables of a test should be considered. Finally, we hypothesize that reassessment on a different day may benefit a more accurate clinical assessment of adults with ADHD, in order to adequately take intraindividual fluctuations and limitations regarding test reliability into account.

KW - adult ADHD

KW - impairment

KW - neuropsychology

KW - sustained attention

KW - vigilance

U2 - 10.3390/ijerph19095216

DO - 10.3390/ijerph19095216

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85128757570

SN - 1661-7827

VL - 19

JO - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

JF - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

IS - 9

M1 - 5216

ER -

It Takes Time: Vigilance and Sustained Attention Assessment in Adults with ADHD

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

Handle.net

Fingerprint

Cite this