RESULTS In ADHD patients the middle and inferior frontal gyri , basal ganglia , and cerebellum were most often affected by MPH .
The middle and inferior frontal gyri were frequently affected by MPH during inhibitory control tasks .
Throughout nine task-based fMRI studies investigating MPH 's effect on the brains of pediatric patients with ADHD , MPH result ed in increased activation within frontal lobes , basal ganglia , and cerebellum .
In most cases , this increase " normalized " activation of at least some brain areas to that seen in typically developing children
OBJECTIVE Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) is a psychiatric disorder affecting 5 % of children .
Methylpheni date ( MPH ) is a common medication for ADHD .
Studies examining MPH 's effect on pediatric ADHD patients ' brain function using functional magnetic resonance imaging ( fMRI ) have not been compiled .
The goals of this systematic review were to determine ( 1 ) which areas of the brain in pediatric ADHD patients are modulated by a single dose of MPH , ( 2 ) whether areas modulated by MPH differ by task type performed during fMRI data acquisition , and ( 3 ) whether changes in brain activation due to MPH relate to clinical improvements in ADHD-related symptoms .
Methylphenidate normalises activation and functional connectivity deficits in attention and motivation networks in medication-naïve children with ADHD during a rewarded continuous performance task
BACKGROUND Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ( ADHD ) have deficits in motivation and attention that can be ameliorated with the indirect dopamine agonist Methylpheni date ( MPH ) . We used functional magnetic resonance imaging ( fMRI ) to investigate the effects of MPH in medication-naïve children with ADHD on the activation and functional connectivity of " cool " attentional as well as " hot " motivation networks . METHODS 13 medication-naïve children with ADHD were scanned twice , under either an acute clinical dose of MPH or Placebo , in a r and omised , double-blind design , while they performed a rewarded continuous performance task that measured vigilant selective attention and the effects of reward . Brain activation and functional connectivity was compared to that of 13 healthy age-matched controls to test for normalisation effects of MPH . RESULTS MPH normalised performance deficits that were observed in children with ADHD compared to controls . Under placebo , children with ADHD showed reduced activation and functional inter-connectivity in bilateral fronto-striato-parieto-cerebellar networks during the attention condition , but enhanced activation in the orbitofrontal and superior temporal cortices for reward . MPH within children with ADHD enhanced the activation of fronto-striato-cerebellar and parieto-temporal regions . Compared to controls , MPH normalised differences during vigilant attention in parieto-temporal activation and fronto-striatal and fronto-cerebellar connectivity ;  MPH also normalised the enhanced orbitofrontal activation in children with ADHD in response to reward . CONCLUSIONS MPH normalised attention differences between children with ADHD and controls by both up-regulation of dysfunctional fronto-striato-thalamo-cerebellar and parieto-temporal attention networks and down-regulation of hyper-sensitive orbitofrontal activation for reward processing . MPH thus shows context -dependent dissociative modulation of both motivational and attentional neuro-functional networks in children with ADHD
RESULTS In ADHD patients the middle and inferior frontal gyri , basal ganglia , and cerebellum were most often affected by MPH .
The middle and inferior frontal gyri were frequently affected by MPH during inhibitory control tasks .
Throughout nine task-based fMRI studies investigating MPH 's effect on the brains of pediatric patients with ADHD , MPH result ed in increased activation within frontal lobes , basal ganglia , and cerebellum .
In most cases , this increase " normalized " activation of at least some brain areas to that seen in typically developing children
OBJECTIVE Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) is a psychiatric disorder affecting 5 % of children .
Methylpheni date ( MPH ) is a common medication for ADHD .
Studies examining MPH 's effect on pediatric ADHD patients ' brain function using functional magnetic resonance imaging ( fMRI ) have not been compiled .
The goals of this systematic review were to determine ( 1 ) which areas of the brain in pediatric ADHD patients are modulated by a single dose of MPH , ( 2 ) whether areas modulated by MPH differ by task type performed during fMRI data acquisition , and ( 3 ) whether changes in brain activation due to MPH relate to clinical improvements in ADHD-related symptoms .