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Iron and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: what is the empirical evidence so far? A systematic review of the literature

Iron and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: what is the empirical evidence so far? A systematic review of the literature
Iron and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: what is the empirical evidence so far? A systematic review of the literature
The authors systematically reviewed evidence on iron status, as well as studies of iron supplementation, in individuals with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). PubMed, Ovid, EMBASE and Web of Knowledge were searched on 4 July 2012. Quantitative appraisal of trials was performed using Jadad’s score. Most (n = 20) of the retrieved studies assessed an index of peripheral iron status (i.e., serum ferritin), with overall mixed results – that is, both significant and nonsignificant association between ADHD symptoms and serum ferritin levels. One MRI study reported significantly lower indices of thalamic iron in ADHD versus comparison subjects. Two trials, an open-label and a pilot randomized placebo-controlled study with high Jaded score (4), showed improvement in some but not all measures of ADHD symptoms. Three studies showed that children with ADHD plus sleep disorders, in particular restless legs syndrome, are at risk of iron deficiency. Finally, two studies suggested that iron deficiency might decrease the effectiveness of psychostimulant treatment. The authors discussed how the field could move from initial research mainly focused on serum ferritin towards a more comprehensive and translational investigation of iron in ADHD, with the potential to inform clinical practice in terms of screening and treating iron deficiency in individuals with ADHD.
ADHD, brain, ferritin, iron, MRI, transferrin
1473-7175
1227-1240
Cortese, Samuele
53d4bf2c-4e0e-4c77-9385-218350560fdb
Angriman, Marco
3520e752-d35c-461f-80f4-b31203319cef
Lecendreux, Michel
51135545-1b33-4540-8ba9-1e8a1cc57173
Konofal, Eric
6328bf1a-74f1-4438-8c14-333ccc8931eb
Cortese, Samuele
53d4bf2c-4e0e-4c77-9385-218350560fdb
Angriman, Marco
3520e752-d35c-461f-80f4-b31203319cef
Lecendreux, Michel
51135545-1b33-4540-8ba9-1e8a1cc57173
Konofal, Eric
6328bf1a-74f1-4438-8c14-333ccc8931eb

Cortese, Samuele, Angriman, Marco, Lecendreux, Michel and Konofal, Eric (2012) Iron and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: what is the empirical evidence so far? A systematic review of the literature. Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics, 12 (10), 1227-1240. (doi:10.1586/ern.12.116).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The authors systematically reviewed evidence on iron status, as well as studies of iron supplementation, in individuals with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). PubMed, Ovid, EMBASE and Web of Knowledge were searched on 4 July 2012. Quantitative appraisal of trials was performed using Jadad’s score. Most (n = 20) of the retrieved studies assessed an index of peripheral iron status (i.e., serum ferritin), with overall mixed results – that is, both significant and nonsignificant association between ADHD symptoms and serum ferritin levels. One MRI study reported significantly lower indices of thalamic iron in ADHD versus comparison subjects. Two trials, an open-label and a pilot randomized placebo-controlled study with high Jaded score (4), showed improvement in some but not all measures of ADHD symptoms. Three studies showed that children with ADHD plus sleep disorders, in particular restless legs syndrome, are at risk of iron deficiency. Finally, two studies suggested that iron deficiency might decrease the effectiveness of psychostimulant treatment. The authors discussed how the field could move from initial research mainly focused on serum ferritin towards a more comprehensive and translational investigation of iron in ADHD, with the potential to inform clinical practice in terms of screening and treating iron deficiency in individuals with ADHD.

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More information

Published date: 2012
Keywords: ADHD, brain, ferritin, iron, MRI, transferrin
Organisations: Clinical Neuroscience

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 380404
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/380404
ISSN: 1473-7175
PURE UUID: e990b609-fe3f-4b6f-822f-8b72034b003f
ORCID for Samuele Cortese: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-5877-8075

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Date deposited: 21 Aug 2015 15:30
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:52

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Contributors

Author: Samuele Cortese ORCID iD
Author: Marco Angriman
Author: Michel Lecendreux
Author: Eric Konofal

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